\m\  SM 


CO 


GIFT  OF 
Mrs.   May  L*   Cheney 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM 


AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


A  GRAPHIC  AND  CHRONOLOGICAL  HISTORY  OF  RUSSIA'S 

BLOODY    NEMESIS,    AND    A   DESCRIPTION    OF 

EXILE  LIFE   IN   ALL  ITS  TRUE  BUT 

HORRIFYING  PHASES, 


BEING     THE     RESULTS     OF     A     TOUR    THROUGH     RUSSIA     AND 

SIBERIA    MADE     BY     THE     AUTHOR,     WHO     CARRIED 

WITH    HIM    LETTERS     OF     COMMENDATION 

FROM  BOTH    THE   AMERICAN  AND 

UUS^AN    GOVERN  MFA'TS. 


IB  -v     Cf .    "W.     IE3  TJ"  JE  "£j  , 
\\ 

Author  of  "Heroes  of  the  Plains,"    "Metropolitan  Life  Unveiled," 

"Border  Outlaws,"  etc.,  etc. 


ILLUSTRATED  WITH  OVER  200  ENGRAVINGS. 


SAN.   FRANCISCO,   CAL.  : 

A.  L.   BANCROFT  &  COMPANY, 

1883. 


GIFT  OF 


Copyright,  1883,  by  J.  W.  BUEL. 


i 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 
PURPOSES  AND  AUSPICES  OF  MY  TRIP  THROUGH  RUSSIA,  -  -26 — 32 

CHAPTER   L 

RUSSIAN  NIHILISM. 

Departure  from  America.  —  Arrival  at  the  First  'Russian  Port.  — 
Defensive  Strength  of  Oonstadt. —  My  Arrest  as  a  "Sus- 
pect."—  Going  Through  me  for  Seditious  Papers. — Compli- 
cations Increase  Because  of  my  Inability  to  Speak  the  Lan- 
guage.—  Custom  House  Examination.  —  A  Quizzical  Tout 
Ensemble.  —  Droshky  Drivers.  — Engaging  a  Guide  and  Inter- 
preter.—  Under  Close  Surveillance.  —  Further  Embarrass- 
ments.—  Brought  Before  the  Famous  "Third  Section."  —  My 
Release  Accomplished  Through  the  Intercession  of  our  Minis- 
ter.—  Stories  About  the  Third  Section.  —  Horrible  Tragedies 
Enacted  Therein.  —  How  Nicholas  I.  Used  to  Punish  Female 
Offenders.  —  My  Meeting  With  Minister  Hoffman,  and  Presen- 
tation of  my  Official  Letters.  —  He  Advises  mo  not  to  Attempt 
an  Investigation  of  Nihilism,  on  Account  of  Dangers  I 
Would  be  Certain  to  Encounter. —  Americans  not  Easily  De- 
terred.—  My  Introduction  to  Count  Tolstoi,  Russian  Minister 
of  the  Interior.  —  My  Letter  from  Minister  W.  H.  Hunt.  —  A 
Meeting  With  the  Minister  of  Police.  —  Etiquette  of  the  Im- 
perial Court.  — The  Want  of  a  Dress-Suit  Places  me  in  an  Em- 
"barassing  Position. — An  Interview  With  the  Count. —  He 
Talks  With  me  Frankly,  and  Proffers  any  Assistance  in  his 
Power. —  Access  Granted  me  to  all  the  Government  Records.  — 
The  Czar  Sends  a  Note  Proffering  an  Interview.  — I  submit  a 
Series  of  Questions  on  Nihilism.  —  One  that  was  Objected  to 
for  Decided  Reasons. — My  Second  Meeting  With  Minister 
Pleve.  —  How  he  Became  Minister  of  Police.  —  He  Transmits 
His  Photograph  to  me  in  America,  With  an  Autograph  Let- 
ter. ---------  33—50 


M49151 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  n. 

Some  of  the  Unwritten  History  of  Kussia.  —  Extent,  Population 
and  Manner  of  Government. —  Religions,  National  Debt,  Army, 
and  Imperial  Expenses.  —  Kief,  the  Holy  City.  —  Number  of 
Imperial  Palaces,  and  How  They  are  Maintained.  —  How  Rus- 
sia was  Changed  From  a  Republic  to  an  Autocracy.  —  Early 
Wars.  —  Chronology  of  the  Ruling  Dynasty.  —  Living  Mem- 
bers of  the  Present  Imperial  Family.  —  How  the  Grand  Duke 
Nicholas  Became  Commander  of  the  Russian  Forces  in  the  War 
With  Turkey.  — Why  his  Father  Removed  Him.  — Grand 
Duke  Alexis'  Appointment  as  Admiral  of  the  Russian  Navy.  — 
His  Discovery  of  Nihilistic  Sentiments  Among  the  Marines.  .  51 — 61 

CHAPTER   m. 

The  Three  Greatest  Characters  in  Russian  History. —  Some  events 
in  the  Life  of  Peter  the  Great  Never  Before  Made  Public.  — 
His  Brother  an  Idiot.  — His  Fight  With  Five  Assassins.  —  His 
Wars  with  Charles  XII.,  of  Sweden.  —  Conspiracies  Formed 
Against  Him  in  his  own  Army.  —  Ordering  the  Decapitation  of 
Three  Hundred  Men. — A  Ghastly  Incident  of  the  Execu- 
tion.—  Peter's  Infatuation  fora  Beautiful  Woman. — Discov- 
ered in  a  Treasonable  Act,  she  is  Ordered  to  the  Block.  —  How 
Peter  Conducted  Himself  at  her  Execution.  —  "  Oh !  Beautiful 
Being,  Would  That  I  Could  Take  Your  Place." —He  Never 
Gave  a  Pardon.  —  The  Founding  and  Building  of  St.  Peters- 
burg. —  Establishment  of  his  Court  at  Peterhoff.  —  Striking  a 
Dagger  Into  the  Heart  of  his  own  Son.  —  Securing  a  Wife  for 
Peter  III. —  Marriage  of  Catharine  II. —  Domestic  Intrigues. — 
Peter  IH.  Orders  the  Arrest  of  Catharine  H.— How  the  Wily 
Queen  Foiled  Her  Husband's  Purposes. — A  Midnight  Drive 
From  Peterhoff.  —  Descent  of  the  Horse  Guards  Under  Catha- 
rine Upon  the  Winter  Palace.  —  Flight  of  Peter  III.  to  Cron- 
stadt.  — A  Lovely  Letter  Which  Allured  Peter  III.  to  His 
Death. — Assassination  of  the  Czar  by  his  Wife's  Orders. — 
Circumstances  Under  Which  Paul  I.  was  Assassinated.  —  Poli- 
cies and  Wars  Under  Catharine  II.  —  The  Dreadful  Massacre 
of  Poles  in  Warsaw. —  Catharine's  Debaucheries.  —  A  Singular 
Death-Bed  Scene.  -  -  -  62—76 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Russia's  Great  Rulers.  —  Difficulties  which  Confronted  Alexander 
IL  on  his  Accession. — The  Reforms  he  Introduced. — First 


CONTENTS.  7 

Overt  Act  of  Nihilists.  —  Attack  on  the  Winter  Palace  in  1825, 
and  Dreadful  Slaughter  of  the  Mob. — Alexander  Herzen  and  the 
Revolutionary  Press.  —  History  of  Serfdom.  —  Manumission  of 
the  Serfs.  — Scheme  of  Liberation  as  put  into  Execution  by  the 
Emperor.  —  How  the  Noblemen  Lived  in  Sumptuous  Prof- 
ligacy. —  Results  of  the  Liberation.  — Revival  of  Nihilism.  — 
Inflammatory  Organs. —  A  Remarkable  Manifesto.  — "  God  to  be 
Denied  and  Every  Genius  Stifled  in  its  Cradle." — Peculiari- 
ties of  Russian  Students.  -  -  77—94 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  Polish  Insurrection.  —  First  Attempt  on  the  Emperor's  Life.  — 
Mysterious  Ringing  of  a  Bell  in  Rappenberg.  —  Second  Attempt 
to  Assassinate  Alexander.  —  First  Arrest  of  Students  for  Incen- 
diary Speeches.  — Revelations  by  Netschaief.  — Complete  Ex- 
pose of  the  Nihilistic  Organization. — How  They  Recruit, 
Operate,  and  Carry  on  the  Work  of  Murder.  -  -  95 — 99 

CHAPTER  VL 

Effects  of  the  War  With  Turkey.  —  General  Trepoff 's  Brutality.— 
How  he  was  Shot  by  Vera  Zassulitch.  —  Remarkable  Trial  of 
the  Assailant.  —  The  Court,  Threatened  by  a  Mob,  Forced  to 
acquit  her.  —  Collision  Between  the  Mob  and  Police.  — Escape 
of  Vera.  —  Her  Strange  History.  — Daughter  of  a  distinguished 
General,  but  Persecuted  to  the  Point  of  Desperation.  —  Stab- 
bing to  Death  of  General  Mezentrieff  and  Escape  of  the  Assas- 
sins.—  Attempt  on  the  Life  of  Alexander  II.  by  Solovieff.  —  All 
the  Large  Cities  of  Russia  Placed  Under  Martial  Law.  —  Execu- 
tion of  Solovieff.  —  Futility  of  Repressive  Measures.  —  Corre- 
spondence from  Nihilists  in  the  Government  Offices. —  First  Re- 
sort to  Dynamite.  —  Blowing  up  of  a  Train  Supposed  ^to 
Contain  the  Emperor.  —  How  and  by  Whom  the  Mine  was 
Laid.  —  Experts  in  the  use  of  Dynamite  Brought  into  the  Ser- 
vice of  the  Nihilists.  —  A  Dreadful  Plot. — Preparations  for 
Blowing  up  the  Winter  Palace.  —  The  Terrific  Explosion  in 
Which  Forty-Five  men  were  Killed.  —  Accidental  Escape  of 
the  Emperor.  —  Impressive  Scenes.  —  Description  of  the  Win- 
ter Palace.  —  Finest  Building  in  the  World.  —  Thousands  of 
Workmen  Killed  During  its  Construction. — How  the  Royal 
Family  Dine.  — Establishment  of  other  Repressive  Measures.  — 
Count  Melikoff  Entrusted  with  Their  Enforcement.  —  Every 
one  Ordered  Under  Arrest  who  Should  Appear  on  the  Streets 


8  CONTENTS. 

After  Dark.  —  Terrorism  Inaugurated.  —  The  Dreadful  Third 
Section.  — Fate  of  Muishkin  who  was  Lashed  into  Insanity.  — 
A  Double  Execution. — Famous  Trial  of  Sixteen  Nihilists. — 
Remarkable  Heroism  Displayed  by  Female  Revolutionists. —  A 
Desperate  Fight  with  the  Police. — History  of  Distinguished 
Nihilists  on  Trial. — Attempted  Assassination  of  Gen.  Meli- 
koff.  —  Execution  of  his  Assailant.  100—135 

CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Culminating  Event  in  Nihilistic  Vengeance.  —  Alexander  IL, 
His  Times  and  Adversities. —  A  Youthful  Witness  to  the  Decem- 
brist's Outbreak.  —  His  Early  Inclination  Opposed  to  the  Will 
of  His  Father. — Forced  into  the  Army.  —  His  Courtship  and 
Marriage. —  Suicide  of  his  Father.  — Sad  Circumstances  under 
which  Alexander  Accepted  the  Crown.  —  The  Plot  for  his  Assas- 
sination.—  Laying  a  Dynamite  Mine  in  Petersburg.  —  Secret 
Plans  of  the  Conspirators.  —  The  City  barely  Escapes  Destruc- 
tion.—  Explosion  of  the  First  Bomb. — It  Kills  two  of  he 
Imperial  Guard,  and  Shatters  his  Majesty's  Carriage.  — 
Explosion  of  the  Second  Bomb.  —  The  Emperor  Mortally 
Wounded.  —  Great  Excitement.  —  One  of  the  Assassins 
Killed  by  the  Bomb  he  Throws.  —  The  Czar  Asks  to  be 
carried  to  the  Winter  Palace. — Examination  of  His 
Wounds.  —  His  Sinking  Condition  Bulletined  by  Display- 
ing a  Flag  from  the  Palace.  —  Administration  of  the 
Last  Sacrament.  —  Announcement  of  the  Emperor's  Death  and 
its  effects.  —  Accession  to  the  Throne  of  Alexander  III.  — 
Funeral  Services  at  the  Fortress  Chapel. — Description  of  the 
Fortress  Chapel.  —  Arrest  of  the  Assassins.  —  Imperial  Officers 
Arrested  for  Neglect  of  Duties.  —  Uncovering  the  Secret  Mine.  — 
Trial  of  the  Assassins.  —  Descriptions  of  the  Assassins.  —  A  Bold 
Speech.  —  Were  the  Criminals  Tortured?  —  Condemned  to 
Death.  —  Efforts  of  a  Mob  to  Rescue  the  Prisoners.  —  A 
Desperate  Fight  in  which  Several  are  Killed.  —  One  Man  Hanged 
Three  Times.  —  Terrible  Scenes  at  the  Gallows.  — A  Memorial 
Chapel  in  Remembrance  of  the  Emperor.  136—163 

CHAPTER  VIIL 

Accession  of  Alexander  III.  —  His  Dread  of  the  Nihilists.  —  Removal 
of  the  Court  Residence  to  Peterhoff.  —  Description  of  the 
Palace  Grounds. —  Bewildering  Displays  of  Gold. — How  the 
Emperor  Lives.  —  Precautions  Against  his  Enemies.  —  High 


CONTENTS. 

Walls,  Double  Locks  and  Bars  and. Three  Cordons  of  Guards.  — 
Danger  of  Assassination.  —  Murder  of  an  Old  Gardener  by  an 
Imperial  Guard.  —  How  Nicholas  I.  Quelled  a  mob.  -  169—174 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Secret  Printing  Press. — Female  Heroism. —  Personal  Charac- 
teristics of  Leading  Female  Nihilists. —  Assassination  of  Gen. 
Strelnikoff.— Military  Execution  of  Soukahnoff.— Preparations 
for  the  Coronation  of  Alexander  III. —  A  Description  of  the 
Grand  Votive  Church  —  Discovery  of  a  Dynamite  Mine  under 
the  Royal  Chapel— The  Czar's  Visit  to  Moscow  —  Secrecy 
with  which  his  Movements  were  Conducted  —  Postponement  of 
the  Coronation  —  Moscow,  the  Holy  City  —  Pilgrimages  to  her 
Shrines. 176-186 

CHAPTER  X. 

Difficulties  of  Satisfying  the  two  Antagonistic  Factions  in  Russia. — 
Effects  of  a  Conversation  with  a  Russian  Minister.  — My  Recep- 
tion by  the  Terrorists.  —  A  Syllabus  of  the  Great  State  Trials, 
Prepared  by  a  Female  Liberalist.  —  The  Famous  Sixteen  Con- 
spirators. —  Wonderful  Sacrifices  of  Private  Fortunes  to  Aid 
the  Nihilists.  —  The  Assassination  of  Prince  Krapotkin. — 
Secret  Meetings  and  Pledges  to  Destroy  the  Czar.  —  Too  many 
Volunteer  their  Services  as  Assassins. —  Arrest  of  (Joldenberg, 
the  Nihilist,  and  his  Astonishing  Confession.  —  A  Complete 
Exposure  of  all  the  Terrible  Plots  laid  by  Nihilists.  —  Graphic 
Description  of  the  Dynamite  Mine  near  Moscow.  —  How  the 
Conspirators  Worked  and  Averted  Suspicion.  —  Mariana  Semi- 
ovna's  Wonderful  Zeal,  Cunning,  and  Bravery.  —  Resolving  to 
Die  Rather  than  Surrender. — An  Ingenious  Contrivance  to 
Blow  up  the  House  and  Themselves  should  they  be  Detected. — 
The  Siberian  Mines.  —  The  Nobler  Traits  Manifested  by  Alex- 
ander IL  —  Effects  of  his  Assassination.  -  -  187-236 

EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 
CHAPTER  XI. 

My  Youthful  Longings  to  Visit  Siberia.  —  Preparing  to  Enter 
the  Frozen  Wilderness.  —  Exiles  in  the  Central  Dismissal 
Prison,  Moscow.  —  Sad  Sights  and  Affecting  Good-byes  be- 
tween Exiles  and  their  Families.  —  Woman's  Love  the  same 


10  CONTENTS. 

Everywhere.  —  A  Pathetic  Incident.  —  A  Visit  to  the  Krem- 
lin.—  A  Miraculous  Picture  of  Christ.  —  How  Napoleon's 
Array  Tried  to  Destroy  It.  —  The  Great  Tower  of  Ivan  Veliki 
.  and  the  Gigantic  Bell.  — Off  for  Nijni  Novgorod  with  an  Ameri- 
can Companion.  — A  Visit  to  the  Nijni  Fair. — Daylight  and 
Night-time  Scenes.  —  Description  of  Nijni.  —  A  Voyage  down 
the  Volga  and  up  the  Kama.  — How  People  Travel  on  Russian 
Steamers.  — Inveterate  Gambling.  — Arrival  at  Perm.  —  Rail- 
roading Across  the  Ural  Mountains. — Appearance  of  Nijni 
Tagilsk.  — Visit  to  the  Iron  and  Malachite  Mines.  —  My  First 
Step  on  Siberian  Soil.  —  The  Journey  to  Ekaterineberg,  and 
how  Mining  for  Malachite  is  Conducted.  -  -  237-258 

CHAPTER  XH. 

Preparations  for  Overland  Travelling.  —  Engagement  of  a  Taran- 
tass  and  Yemtschik  —  Description  of  Each.  —  Off  with  a 
Dash.  —  Fears  and  Misgivings. — Arrival  at  the  First  Post 
Station.  —  A  Tea  Drinking  People.  —  Travelling  Throughout 
the  Night.  —  Some  of  the  Discomforts  I  Endured.  —  Forty-one 
Hours  in  a  Tarantass.  —  Arrival  at  Tieumen,  Hungry,  Sore  and 
Intensely  Miserable.  —A  Dinner  of  Black  Bread  and  Salt.— A 
Talk  with  the  Governor.  —  His  History  Respecting  the  Origin 
of  Banishment  as  a  Punishment.  —  Boris  Godunoff's  Idea. — 
An  Enforced  Settlement  of  Siberia.  —  Privileges  of  Village 
Courts.  —  Offences  Punishable  by  Deportation.  —  Those  in 
Exile  Generally  better  Educated  than  the  Masses.  —  How 
Prisoners  are  Transported.  —  Driven  Two  Thousand  Miles 
Under  the  Stinging  Lash.  — Witnessing  the  Departure  of  Ex- 
iles from  Tieumen.  —  Resumption  of  my  Journey  Eastward.  — 
Engaging  a  Tumbril.  —  Bad  News.  —  Checked  by  a  Swollen 
Stream.  —  Trying  to  Pass  the  Rubicon.  —  Capsized,  Bag  and 
Baggage,  in  a  Swift-flowing  Creek. — Lost  in  the  Jungles. — 
A  Night  of  Terror.  —The  Most  Miserable  Twenty-four  Hours 
of  my  Life.  — Appearance  of  a  Tartar  Belle.  -  -  259-277 

CHAPTER   Xni. 

Arrival  at  Tobolsk.  —  Description  of  the  City.  —  A  Famous  Bell  that 
was  Exiled  with  the  Uglitch  Insurrectionists.  —  My  First  Insight 
into  a  Siberian  Prison.  —  How  the  Prisoners  Labor.  — Punish- 
ment by  the  Knout. — Heavy  Manacles  and  Their  Effects. — 
Treatment  of  Female  Convicts.  —  Punishment  with  the  Plete.  — 
Engagement  of  Another  Interpreter.  —  A  Trip  by  Steamer  from 


CONTENTS.  11 

Tobolsk     to    Tomsk. —  The    Ostjak     People.  — How    They 
Capture  Fish  in  the  Obi.  -  277—289 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

Debarkation  at  Tomsk. — How  Russia  Evades  the  Sacred  Law. — 
Description  of  the  prisons  in  Tomsk.  —  Departure  for  Krasno- 
iarsk  by  Tumbril.  —  A  Horrid  Dream.  —  Meeting  with  a 
Convoy  of  Prisoners.  —  Tipping  the  Chief  Guard.  —  Heavy 
Shackles  Worn  by  the  Convicts.  —  A  Pitiable  Instance  of  Mal- 
treatment.—  Examination  of  an  Exile  at  a  Post-Station. — 
Mortified  Ankles  and  Wrists  with  the  Tendons  Exposed.  —  May 
I  Never  see  Another  Sight  so  Horrible.  —  Appearance  of  a 
Female  Convict  in  Irons.  —  The  Flesh  Worn  from  Her  Neck.  — 
Wives  and  Little  Children  Voluntarily  Accompanying  the  Exiles. 

289—301 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Inspection  of  the  Prison  at  Krasnoiarsk.  —  Convicts  Driven  to 
Insanity.  —  A  Hospital  for  Maniacs.  —  The  Chains  not  Removed 
from  Exiles  who  Fall  111.  —  A  Sad  Case  in  Point.  —  Crossing  the 
Yenisei  River  by  Means  of  a  Flying  Bridge.  —  Purchasing  an 
Outfit  in  which  to  Visit  Yeniseisk.  —  A  Trip  Off  the  Highway.  — 
Camping  Outin  a  Siberian  Forest.  —What  Was  That?— Ex- 
.  citing  Adventure  with  a  Bear. —  Bear  Hunting  with  Whips.  301 — 311 

CHAPTER  XVL 

Arrival  at  Yeniseisk.  —  In  the  Midst  of  a  Fur-bearing  Country.  — 
Novel  way  of  Catching  Bears.  —  Description  of  the  Tundras.  — 
Frigidity  that  Freezes  Those  Who  Read  About  It.  —  Sledging  and 
Camping  in  a  Frozen  Wilderness.  —  Witnessing  the  Departure 
of  Tunguese  for  Their  Winter  Hunt. — Catching  Sables. — 
Elk  Hunting. —  How  Reindeer  are  Taken  and  Domesticated.  311 — 320 

CHAPTER  XVIL 

Siberia  Rich  in  Precious  Metals.  —  My  Visit  to  a  Mine  Worked  by 
Convict  Labor.  —  How  the  Mining  is  Conducted.  —  Conveying 
Gold  by  Convoys  to  Irkoutsk.  —  My  Meeting  With  an 
Exile.  —  Determined  to  Visit  His  Abode.  —  Description 
of  his  Hut.  —  The  Exile's  Story.  —  Torn  Away  from 
Home  and  Sent  into  Exile  Without  Trial.  —  Terrible  Suffer- 


12  CONTENTS. 

ings  on  the  Transport  Route.  —  Sent  Down  into  the  Mines. — 
Flagellation  with  the  Scorpion. — Tearing  Pieces  of  Flesh  out 
of  the  Back.—  A  Pitiable  Tale  of  Woe.  — Message  Which  the 
Exile  Begged  me  Carry  to  his  Wife.  -  -  320—334 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Travelling  in  a  Strange  Country  after  Night.  — Wolves !  a  Success- 
ful Shot.  —The  Governor's  Story. — A  Terrible  Ride  to  Alex- 
andreffsky  Prison.  —  Chased  by  Wolves. — Discharging  the 
Last  Shot.  —  Attacked  in  the  Troika.  —  Down  go  the  Outside 
Horses.  —  Three  Furious  Wolves  Drag  the  Driver  From  His 
Seat.  —  Fighting  with  a  Gun  Barrel.  —  The  most  Desperate 
Encounter  ever  Described.  —  Succor  Arrives,  but  too  Late  to 
Save  the  Horses  and  Driver.  —  My  Departure  for  Irkoutsk.  — 
Wolves  on  the  Highway. —  Why  I  Slept  in  a  Roadside  Inn.  — 
Fast  Travelling  in  Siberia.  334—847 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Situation  of  Irlcoutsk. —  Attending  the  Races  —  How  Horses  are 
Trained  for  Racing.  —  Visit  to  the  Prisons.  —  Refused  Ad'nis- 
sion.  —  Meeting  with  an  Exile  from  Kara.  — His  Statements  of 
How  Prisoners  are  Treated  at  Kara.  —  Brutalities  of  Vicious 
Guards.  —  The  Russian  Law  for  Punishing  Convicts.  —  Proba- 
tionary Sentences. — No  Quick-Silver  Mines  in  Siberia. — 
Working  Under  Ground.  —  Superstitions  of  Exiles.  —  Political 
Offenders  at  Kara.  —  The  Prison  Hospital. — Punishments  that 
Make  Maniacs  of  the  Convicts.  — Dreadful  Sights  in  the  Hospi- 
tals. —  Branding  of  Convicts.  — Dangers  Incurred  in  Attempts 
to  Escape.  —How  I  Verified  Stories  Told  me  by  Exiles.  -  347—360 

CHAPTER  XX. 

The  Native  Tribes  of  Siberia.  —  Prominence  of  the  Ostjak  People. — 
How  they  Hunt  and  Fish.  — The  Samoyeds.  —  Kirghiz  Tartars, 
Their  Proclivities  for  Robbing  and  Fighting. —  The  Buriats. — 
The  Goldi,  Their  Strange  Burial  Customs. —  The  Gil  yaks. — 
Hunters  and  Polygamist?.—  Bear  Hunting  by  Gilyaks.  — How 
They  Capture  the  Most  Dangerous  Animals.  —  Festival  of  Kill- 
ing the  Bear.  —  Strange  Superstitions  and  Ceremonies. —  Ainu- 
lets  of  Bears'  Claws. —The  Tunguse  and  Kirghiz. —How 
they  Live.  -  .....  360—374 


CONTENTS.  13 


CHAPTER  XXL 

Making  Irkoutsk  my  Headquarters.  —  Cosmopolitan  Character  of 
the  Place.  — Meeting  With  an  American.  — His  Description  of 
the  Island  Sakhalein.  — Treatment  of  Exiles  at  the  Dui  Mines. — 
Dreadful  Cruelties  Practiced  on  Exiles  at  the  Dui  Mines. — 
Rewards  Paid  for  the  Heads  of  Escaping  Convicts.  —  How  the 
Gilyaks  Hunt  Exiles.  —  Description  of  the  Natives  on  Sakha- 
lein.—  Nikolaefsk  Prison.  —  Insanity  Caused  by  Brutal  Treat- 
ment.—  Attempts  to  Escape.  —  Killing  Convicts  for  Their 
Clothes.  —  Cannibalism  Among  a  Battalion  of  Troops.  —  Hor- 
rors of  a  Snow  Storm.  —  The  Manzas  Robbers.  -  -  874—391 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Description  of  Yakoutsk.  —  Belles  of  Yakoutsk  Riding  on  Oxen 
Astride. —  The  Coldest  Spot  on  Earth.  —  Killing  of  Reindeer 
by  Yukaghirs. — The  Yakutes. — Their  Peculiar  Customs. — 
Riding  Reindeer.  —  Settlement  of  Yakoutsk  by  Exiles.  —  The 
Scopsi.  —  A  Religious  Sect  that  Practices  Castration. — Found- 
ing their  Faith  upon  St.  Matthew  and  St.  Paul. — Doctrines 
Expounded  by  Scopsi  Priests.  —  How  the  Operation  of  Castra- 
tion is  Performed. —  Similar  Practices  in  Italy  and  Turkey. — 
Unsexing  of  Children  for  Mercenary  Purposes.  —  Penal  Quar- 
ters at  Villiski.  -  391—409 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Interesting  Facts  Concerning  the  Lena  River.  —  A  Description  of 
the  Country  which  it  Drains.  —  Early  Adventurers  who  Crossed 
Siberia.  —  A  Trip  Around  the  World  on  Foot  and  by  Ship. — 
Three  Famous  Voyages  Down  the  Lena.  —  Discovery  of  Fossil 
Remains.  —  A  Chinese  Legend  of  the  Mammoth.  —  Legend  of 
the  Samoyeds. — A  Winged  Rhinoceros.  —  Discovery  of  the 
Great  Mammoth.  — Scientific  Theories. —  An  Island  Formed  of 
Mammoth  Bones.  —  Captain  Nordenskj old's  Voyage  Through 
the  Arctic  Ocean  and  Down  the  Lena.  -  409 — 423 


CHAPTER  XXIY. 

Other  Penal  Mines  of  Siberia. —  Dreadful  Treatment  of  Convicts 
at  Nertchinsk.  —  Testimony  of  two  Gentlemen  who  Visited  the 
Mines. — My  Interview  with  Three  Men  who  hud  Served  Long 


14  CONTENTS. 

Sentences  at  Nertchinsk.  —  Exiles  Working  Three  Hundred 
Feet  Underground.  —  Never  Permitted  to  see  the  Light  of 
Day.  — Working  While  Weighted  Down  with  Manacles.  —  How 
the  Men  are  Punished.  —  Tied  over  a  Beam  and  Whipped  with 
the  Scorpion. —  Drawn  up  and  then  Lacerated  with  the  Knout. — 
Beating  Convicts  into  Insensibility  or  Insanity. — Effects  of 
Constant  Labor  in  the  Mines.  —  Sights  more  Terrible  than 
Dancing  Skeletons.  —  Witchcraft.  —  Torturing  Women  Accused 
of  Practising  the  Black  Art.  —  A  Humane  Spirit  Extending 
Towards  Siberia.  -  -  423-433 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

Preparing  for  My  Return  to  Russia.  —  Troubles  with  My  Bear 
Skin.  — Visit  to  the  Convict  Mines  at  Nijni  Udinsk.  —  Taking 
a  New  Route.  —  Dreadful  Exposures  Experienced  on  the 
Return  Journey. — Virtues  of  My  G-uide.  —  Big  Game. — A 
Bare-Back  Chase  after  Siberian  Antelope.  —  Wounding  of  a 
Big  Buck.  —  A  Five  Mile  Race.  —  Securing  the  Prize.  —  Our 
Camp  at  Night. — Arrival  at  Orenberg;  its  Peopler  <and  Fea- 
tures.—  The  Long  Bridge  at  Samara. — Visit  to  >  Serf 
Village.  —  Great  Changes  that  have  Taken  Place  Since  the 
Liberation.  —  Relation  of  Noblemen  and  Peasants.  —  Com- 
parison of  Serfs  with  Southern  Negroes.  433—443 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Strange  Superstitions  Among  the  Peasantry.  — How  Rooster  Crow- 
ing is  Interpreted.  —  Pigeons  Regarded  as  Holy  Birds.  — 
Reverence  for  Icons.  — Haunted  by  Good  and  Evil  Spirits. — 
A  Singular  Sight  I  Witnessed  in  Moscow.  — The  Black  and 
White  Clergy.  —  Why  the  Serfs  are  so  Poor.  —  The  Wonderful 
Splendor  of  Russian  Churches. — 'A  Drunken  Priesthood. — 
Another  Cause  for  Nihilism.  —  One  Hundred  Annual  Holi- 
days.—  Agriculture  in  Russia.  —  Primitive  Husbandry. — 
Harvesting  with  Small  Sickles.  —  Threshing  with  Flails. — 
Women  in  the  Harvest  Field,  Decked  in  Gay  Colors.  —  Some 
of  the  Obstacles  to  Russian  Farming.  —  Division  of  Lands 
upon  Communistic  Principles. — What  Her  Agriculturists 
Most  Need.  —  Natural  Advantages  of  Russia.  —  What  a  Great 
Country  for  Emigrants,  if  the  Laws  were  Liberal.  -  443—452 


CONTENTS.  15 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

Renewing  Relations  with  Count  Tolstoi.  —  Differences  Between 
Moscow  and  St.  Petersburg.  —  Services  at  St.  Isaac's  Cathe- 
dral.—  Description  of  the  Cathedral. — Bowing  Down  Before 
Images. — A  Big  Thing  in  Candles. — Assuming  an  Attitude 
of  Prayer  Under  Difficulties.  —  Famous  Russian  Choirs. — A 
Paralytic  Carried  to  the  Image  of  Christ. — Faithful' Efforts 
but  no  Cures.  — A  Te  Deum  in  the  Alexander  Monastery  Sung 
by  Monks  and  Neophites.  —  $25,000  for  a  Burial  Place  in  the 
Monastery.  —  Strange  Incident  in  the  Life  of  a  Lady  Superior.  — 
How  she  Spent  $20,000,000  to  Improve  the  Condition  of  the 
Poor.  —  But  the  Money  Belonged  to  the  Church.  —  Her  Arrest, 
Trial,  Conviction, and  Sentence.  —  Pardoned  by  the  Emperor  and 
Reinstated.  — Honored  Above  all  Other  Women.  —  Description 
of  the  Monk  Choir.  —  Heavenly  Music.  — My  Entrancement.  — 
Singing  for  (rod  and  the  Dead.  — Disturbance  Created  by  the 
Employment  of  a  Monk  Tenor.  —  An  Ovation  that  was  Next  to 
a  Riot.  —  A  Silver  Sarcophagus  Containing  the  Bones  of  a  Pa- 
tron Saint. —  Trouble  Caused  Peter  the  Great  by  Priests  who 
Stole  the  Sacred  Bones.  —  $250,000  for  a  Casket.  452—462 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

A  Visit  to  the  Cathedral  Kazan.  — Canonization  of  Lady  Kazan. — 
Clothed  with  Vestments  of  Great  Value,  and  Crowned  with 
Precious  Stones. —A  $100,000  Diamond,  and  a  $500,000 
Sapphire.  —  $200,000,000  Invested  in  Church  Property.  —  The 
Church  Supported  by  Poor  People.  —  Holiday  Celebrations.  — 
Ceremony  of  Blessing  the  Waters. — Miraculous  Properties 
Supposed  to  be  Imparted  by  Priests.  — Bottling  the  Waters  for 
Medicinal  Purposes.  —  Celebration  of  St.  George's  Day. — 
Release  of  Domestic  Animals  that  are  Sprinkled  with  Holy 
Water.  —  Observance  of  Recollection  Monday.  —  Paganish 
Rites  in  the  Cemeteries.  —  Revival  of  Old  Jewish  Customs.  — 
Shocking  Bacchanalia  in  the  Cemeteries.  — Drunkenness  and 
Lewdness  Among  Priests  and  Parishioners. —  Charging  a 
Fixed  Fee  for  Prayers. —  No  Middle  Class  in  Russia.  —  Govern- 
ment Taxes  all  Paid  by  the  Poor How  Guild  Merchants  are 

Created.— Society  in  St.  Petersburg.  —  The  Ten  Command- 
ments of  Catharine  II. — Requirements  for  Admission  into  So- 
ciety.—  Court  Balls.  —  Flagrant  Conduct  as  Told  in  Strange 
Stories.  —  Witnessing  a  Genuine  Russian  Dance.  -  462 — 476 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

Summer  Cottages  of  the  Kich  at  Parvelosk.  — Life  in  St.  Peters- 
burg During  Winter. — The  Two  Principal  Streets.  —  Ice 
Palace  on  the  Neva  River  and  the  Grand  Balls  Given  in  it.  — 
Courtship  Marriage,  and  Domestic  Life  in  Russia.  —  Court- 
ing by  Proxy. — Beauty  Among  the  Rich  and  Homeliness 
Among  the  Peasantry.  — Making  Love  Through  Accordians. — 
Fathers  Courting  for  Their  Sons.  —  The  Matchmaker.  —  How 
This  Professional  Body  Plies  Her  Arts. — Fedotoff's  Celebrat- 
ed Painting,  With  a  Description.  —  A  Pleasing  Description  of  a 
Russian  Marriage.  —  Eastern  Customs  in  Russia. — Who'll  be 
My  Butterfly? — The  Tribulations  of  Married  Life. — How 
Russians  Chastise  Their  '  Wives. — A  Painful  Incident. — 
Women  Declared  by  the  Church  to  Have  no  Souls.  —  Worked 
Harder  Than  Domestic  Annimals.  ...  476 — 492 


HISTORY  OF  JEWISH  OUTRAGES  IN  RUSSIA. 
CHAPTER  XXX. 

My  Interview  With  Count  Tolstoi  Concerning  the  Jews.  — Indiffer- 
ence Manifested  by  the  Government.  —  The  Czar's  Personal 
Application  to  Kothschild  for  a  Loan. — Abrupt  Termination 
'of  the  Interview.  —  Count  Ignatielf's  Policy  in  Dealing  With 
the  Jews.  —  How  he  Issued  Dreadful  Orders,  But  Prevented 
Their  Execution.  —  His  Removal  Accomplished  by  Jews.  — 
Bribery  in  the  Imperial  Court. —  Inability  to  Procure  Informa- 
tion of  Jewish  Outrages  in  St.  Petersburg.  —  My  Decision  to 
Yisit  Warsaw.  —  Description  of  my  Rail  Journey  From  Mos- 
cow to  Warsaw. —  Having  no  Interpreter  I  Fall  into  Trouble. — 
Stopping  the  Train  to  Let  the  Passengers  Get  Drunk.  —  Con- 
flict Between  Passengers  and  Troops.  — How  Railroading  is 
Conducted  in  Russia.  —  Ten  Miles  an  Hour  and  no  Sleeping- 
Car. —  Humorous  Scene  in  a  Brest  Eating  House.  —  Why  I 
Got  up  and  Crowed  Like  a  Rooster.  —  Gaining  a  Sudden  Popu- 
larity. -  -  492—500 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

Arrival  at  Warsaw.  — Description  of  the  City.  — Introduced  to  the 
Mayor  and  Other  Functionaries.  —  A  Drive  With  the  Mayor. — 
Visit  to  Lazienski's  Park. —  A  Beautiful  Lake  and  Two  An- 


CONTENTS. 


17 


cient  Palaces.  —  Description  of  a  Novel  Theatre  Which  wa» 
Built  for  Kings.  —  Mementoes  of  a  Q-lory  Now  Departed. — 
Poland,  the  Hero's  Elysian.  —  Her  History  Written  in 
Blood.  —  Visit  to  Wilanow  Palace.  —  The  Home  of  Sa'  ienski, 
Poland's  Greatest  King.  —  A  Property  That  has  Escaped  uus- 
sian  Confiscation. — Sights  in  and  Around  the  Palace. — De- 
scription of  Three  Wonderful  Sun-Clocks.—  A  Drive  Through 
the  Jewish  Quarters.— Remarkable  Homogeneity  of  the  Race. — • 
How  the  Polish  Jews  Live,  Dress,  and  do  Business.  —  Foul 
Smells  From  Foul  Bodies.  —  Certain  Occasions  When  the  Jews 
use  Bacon.  — How  They  Enforce  Recognition  From  the  Aris- 
tocracy. -  500—506 

CHAPTER    XXXII. 

Some  of  the  Causes  for  Jewish  Outrages.  —  Fanatical  Zeal  and  Love 
of  Plunder.— Dreadful  Riot  at  Elizabethgrad.  —  Thirty  Jew- 
esses Outraged  and  Several  Killed.  —  Destruction  of  $1,000,000 
of  Property. —  Proclamations  Issued  Declaring  Russians  Enti- 
tled to  all  Jewish  Property.  — Mobs,  Infuriated  With  Drink, 
Wreaking  a  Dreadful  Vengeance.  —  The  Riot  at  Smielo  in 
which  Thirty  Jews  are  Killed,  and  Sixteen  Hundred  Rendered 
Homeless.  —  Terrible  Massacre  at  Kiew.  —  Soldiers  Aiding  the 
Mob. — Refusal  of  the  Governor  to  Protect  the  Jews.  —  Out- 
rages at  Kief. — Stoning  Children  to  Death,  Murdering  Old 
Men,  Raping  Women,  and  Burning  Jewish  Homes. — 
Second  Attack  at  Kief. — Desolation  Everywhere. — Twelve 
Towns  in  Flames  at  one  Time.  —  Barrelling  up  Jews  and  Cast- 
ing Them  Into  the  Dnieper.  —  Outrages  at  Odessa.  —  $1,500,000 
Worth  of  Property  Destroyed,  r-  Third  Attack  at  Kief.  —  The 
Mob  led  by  Merchants. —  The  Sarah  Bernhardt  Riots  at  Warsaw 
and  Kief.— The  Terrible  Riots  at  Warsaw.  —  Streets  Deluged 
With  Blood.  —  Count  Ignatieff  Held  Accountable.  —  Soldiers 
Uniting  With  the  Mob.—  No  Protection  for  the  Jews.  -  606—618 

CHAPTER    XXXIIL 

The  "Red  Cock  "  Crowing  Over  Fifteen  Towns.  —  Attacks  on  the 
Jews  of  all  Western  Russia.  —  6,000  Jews  driven  From  Their 
Homes  in  Minsk,  and  Their  Houses  Burned.  —  $80,000,000 
Worth  of  Property  Destroyed.  — Red-Handed  Murder. —  Lurid 
Faced  Arson  and  Foul  Visaged  Outrage  Stalking  Through 
Every  Jewish  Village. —100,000  Jewish  Families  Reduced  to 
Beggary.  —  Governors  of  Provinces,  Government  Officers  and 


18  CONTENTS. 

Troops  all  Encouraging  the  Mobs.  — 4,000  Jews  Expelled  Prom 
Kief.  —  A  Government  Fine  for  Harboring  Jews  Over 
Night.  —  A  Governor  Ordering  5,000  Jews  to  Quit  His  Prov- 
ince.—  Sad  Scenes  of  the  Last  Meetings  of  Jews  in  Their 
Synagogues.  —  Issuance  of  a  Singular  .Rescript.  —  The  Gov- 
ment's  Reply  to  Jewish  Complaints.  — Charging  the  Jews  with 
Monopolizing  Trade  and  of  Swindling  Russian  Subjects.  — 
Appointment  of  Commissions  to  Investigate  the  Causes  of  Anti- 
Semitic  Prejudices. —  Dismissal  of  Commissions  That  had  Made 
Their  Reports  Favorable  to  the  Jews.  —  Observations  on  the 
Short-Comings  of  the  Government. — Are  Three  and  One-Half 
Millions  of  People  to  Perish  Because  They  are  Jews?  -  618—530 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

Distribution  of  the  Jews. —  Poles  and  Jews  Generally  Harmonize. — 
Influence  of  Mussulmans  in  the  Caucasus.  —  Singular  Preju- 
dices at  Odessa.  —  Other  Nationalities  than  Russians  Opposing 
the  Jews.  —  Causes  Assigned. —  The  Cry  of  "Mad-Dog."  — 
Charges  Made  Against  the  Jews.  —  Do  they  Violate  the 
Laws?  —  My  Experience  with  Russians.  —  A  Land  Cursed  by 
Swindlers.  —  An  Irish  Millionaire's  Experience ;  Laughable, 
but  Typical.  —  The  September  Proclamation  Against  the 
Jews  Indefensible.  —  A  National  and  Governmental  Weak- 
ness.—  Jews  No  Worse  than  Russians. —  Christians  Placed  in 
a  Bad  Light. — How  Italians  Beat  the  Jews. — A  Means  by 
which  Russians  Might  Correct  the  Evils  now  Complained  Of. — 
A  Lesson  for  Russia  and  Germany.  -  -  630 — 535 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Review  of  My  Trip  Through  Russia  and  Sibria.  —  The  Largest 
Nation  on  Earth.  —  The  Russians  and  the  Turks. — Hideous 
Evidence  of  Muscovite  Valor. —  Meaning  of  the  Word  Czar. — 
The  Czar  "Above  All,"  and  Chief  Counsellor  of  Deity.  — Ig- 
norance and  Slavery  of  the  Russian  Masses.  —  Bound JDown  by 
Church  and  State.  —  Poverty-Stricken  and  Debt-Ridden. — 
Church  Indulgences  and  Government  Corruptions.  —  What 
Russia  Must  Do  to  Place  Herself  on  an  Equality  with  Other 
Civilized  Nations. —  Nihilism  Apparently  her  only  Hope.  -  636— < 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGES. 

Portrait  of  the  Author FRONTISPIECE. 

View  of  Cronstadt  from  the  East 34 

Custom-house  Examination,  St.  Petersburg 36 

Street  Scene,  Showing  Droshkies  and  Drivers 38 

Suspected  Peasants  Before  the  Third  Section 40 

Count  D.  R.  Tolstoi,  Minister  of  the  Interior 43 

U.  S.  Minister  W.  H.  Hunt 45 

V.  Pleve,  Minister  of  the  Secret  Police 49 

Holy  Mountain  Near  Kief 52 

Holy  City  of  Kief 54 

Principal  Street  of  Kief 56 

Christening  a  .Royal  Infant     .        .        .        .        .        .  .        .59 

Pyrotechnic  Display  in  Honor  of  a  Royal  Birth 61 

Peter  the  Great  Vanquishing  his  Would-Be  Assar-  i  K          ...  63 

Eexcution  by  Decapitation  of  300  Conspirators    .        .        .        .        .  66 
Ropscha  Palace,  Where  Peter  III.  Was  Strangled         .        .        .        .74 

Scene  in  a  Serf  Village 83 

Serfs  Celebrating  Liberation  Day 85 

A  Russian  Noble  Lady,  XVI.  Century 88 

Arrest  of  a  Revolutionary  Student     ' 90 

The  Czar  Declaring  the  Freedom  of  Bulgaria 101 

Vera  Zassulitch 104 

Conducting  Solovieff  to  Execution 109 

Execution  of  Solovieff   . Ill 

House  from  Which  the  Dynamite  Mine  was  Laid        ....  114 

Reception  of  the  Czar  after  the  Railway-Mine  Explosion    .        .        .  116 
19 


20  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGES. 

Effects  of  the  Explosion 118 

A  Te  Deum  in  the  Winter  Palace          .                 121 

Night  Patrol  in  St.  Petersburg 125 

Execution  of  Kviatkovski  and  Presnhkov ,  127 

Portraits  of  Nine  Leading  Nihilists 12  i 

Leo  Hurtmann 131 

Gen.  Loris  Melikoff 134 

Conducting  MelikoflTs  Assailant  to  Execution 135 

City  of  Tiflis 137 

Street  Along  the  Catharine  Canal 139 

Cellar  Room  from  Whence  the  Mine  was  Laid 141 

Explosion  of  the  Second  Dynamite  Bomb 142 

Scene  Immediately  after  the  Explosion          ../...  144 

Appearance  of  the  Emperor's  Carriage 145 

Conveying  the  Wounded  Czar  to  the  Palace 14  3 

View  in  Alexander  Palace,  at  the  Moment  of  the  Emperor's  Death    .  143 

Swearing  Allegiance  to  the  New  Czar 150 

Alexander  III.  Accepting  the  Imperial  Crown 152 

Kemains  of  the  Emperor  Lying  in  State 153 

The  Fortress  Chapel                                        ! 155 

Tomb  of  the  Emperor 156 

Uncovering  the  Dynamite  Mine 157 

The  Czar's  Study   .        . 159 

Driving  Alexander  HI.  to  His  Palace .161 

Trial  of  the  Emperor's  Assassins 163 

Execution  of  the  Emperor's  Assassins 165 

Memorial  Chapel  where  the  Czar  Fell 167 

Portraits  of  Eight  Leading  Female  Nihilists 176 

Execution  of  Soukahnoff 178 

View  of  Moscow  from  the  Moska  Bridge 181 

Gatchina  Palace 183 

Women  on  a  Pilgrimage  to  Moscow 185 

Police  Surveillance 210 

Mineral  Spring  where  the  Czar  Bathed 213 

Arrest  of  Goldenberg 220 


ILLUSTRATIONS.  21 

PAGES. 

Precautions  Against  Nihilists .        .  235 

Central  Dismissal  Prison,  Moscow 238 

Last  Partings  at  the  Dismissal  Prison .  240 

Alexander  III.  and  the  Empress  Entering  Moscow        ....  242 

Great  Bell  and  Tower  at  Moscow 244 

Familiar  Scenes  at  the  Nijni  Novgorod  Fair 247 

Wooden  Church  in  Nijni  Novgorod 249 

View  of  the  Great  Central  Square,  Moscow 251 

Principal  Church  in  Perm 254 

City  of  Nijni  Tagilsk 256 

The  Demi  doff'  Mine,  Ekaterineberg 258 

The  Tarantass .         .260 

View  of  Tieumen 263 

Portions  of  Tieumen  Overflowed 265 

Convict  Barge  on  the  Kama  River 269 

Prisoners  Leaving  Tieumen  for  Eastern  Siberia 271 

Travelling  by  Tumbril 273 

Upper  and  Lower  Towns  of  Tobolsk 278 

Administering  the  Knout 281 

A  Convict  Laborer  in  Irons 283. 

City  of  Tobolsk  from  the  Irtysh  River 285 

Russianized  Ostjaks 288 

The  Gostinnoi  Dvor  at  Tomsk 291 

View  of  South  Side  of  Tomsk 293 

Post  Station  and  Church  on  the  Highway 296 

A  Shackled  Convict,  on  the  Transport  Route 299 

A  Convalescent  Prisoner  in  Irons 302 

"Waiting  to  be  Ferried  Across  the  Yenisei  River 30-"> 

Siberian  Roadside  Inn 307 

Bear  Hunting  with  Whips .310 

Hunting  Reindeer  on  the  Tundras          .         .         .         .         .         .         .314 

Gold  Mine  on  the  Vitim  River 321 

Gold  Train  in  a  Snow  Storm 823 

Arrest  of  the  Pole  and  his  Brother 327 

City  of  Nijni  Udinsk 330 


22  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGES. 

The  Exile's  Abode 332 

Courier  Chased  by  Wolves 835 

Alexandreffsky  Central  Prison 837 

The  Treasury  and  Governor's  House 841 

The  G-overnor's  Race  with  Wolves        .        .        .        .        .        .        .843 

City  of  Irkoutsk 346 

Horse  Racing  at  Irkoutsk 849 

Gold  Mine  and  Washing  House  at  Kara 851 

Ostjaks  in  Winter  Dress 361 

Samoyeds  from  the  Lower  Yenisei 362 

Kirghiz  Tartars  Abducting  Thibetan  Women 864 

A  Goldi  Dead  House 866 

Goldi  in  Winter  Dress 367 

Group  of  Gilyaks 369 

Festival  of  Killing  the  Bear 370 

A  Tunguse  Family  and  Birch-Bark  Tent 872 

Views  of  Irbit         . ,.        .375 

Arrival  of  Gold  Dust  at  Irkoutsk 876 

Ainos,  Aborigines  of  Sakhalein 878 

Great  Fire  at  Irbit,  April  29,  1879 380 

Military  Post  at  Dui,  Sakhalein 382 

Views  on  the  Island  of  Sakhalein 884 

Killing  Escaping  Convicts  for  their  Clothes          ...        ..        .        .386 

The  Etape  Prison,  Nikolaefsk .387 

Vladivostock,  Chief  Russian  Port  on  the  Pacific  .                                  .  389 

A  Corean  House  in  Vlaclivostock 390 

Exiles  on  the  Island  of  Sakhalein          ...                 ...  392 

View  of  the  City  of  Yakoutsk 894 

Views  of  the  Abodes  of  the  Exiles  near  Yiikoutsk        ....  897 

Penal  Quarters  at  Yakoutsk 400 

Exiles' Houses  on  the  Lena,  —  Houses  of  Driod  Dung        .        .        .  403 

Scopsi  Colony  Houses  Near  Yakoutsk 405 

Scenes  in  Villiski 408 

Yakute  and  Reindeer 411 

Kirghiz  of  Northern  Siberia 414 


ILLUSTRATIONS .  2  3 

PAOTCS. 

Placer  Q-old  Mines  of  Malopatomski 424 

Town  and  Principal  Place  of  Upper  Vidinski      .  427 

Branding  a  Woman  Convicted  of  Witchcraft 432 

Departure  from  Irkoutsk 434 

Mining  and  Way  Station  on  the  Route  to  Siberia         ....  436 

Siberian  Antelopes 439 

Kail  way  Bridge  Across  the  Volga  at  Samara,  the  Longest  Bridge  in  the 

World 441 

Eussiun  Agriculture 447 

St.  Isaac's  Cathedral 454 

Ceremony  of  Blessing  the  Waters 464 

Ceremony  of  Blessing  the  Cows 467 

A  Kussian  Peasant  Village 468 

Celebrating  Kecollection  Monday  in  the  Smolensk!  Cemetery     .        .  470 

A  Ball  in  the  Winter  Palace .472 

View  on  Nevskoi  Prospekt  at  the  Bridge  over  St.  Catharine  Canal     .  477 

A  Russian  Courtship 481 

The  Matchmaker 483 

Easter  Customs  in  Russia 490 

Scene  in  an  Eating  Station  at  Brest       .......  498 

Jewish  Synagogue  at  Orel 623 

A  Typical  Jewish  Peddler .        .        .685 


PURPOSES  AND  AUSPICES 

OF    MY 

TRIP    THROUGH    RUSSIA    AND    SIBERIA, 


No  country  on  the  world's  broad  atlas,  whether  civil- 
ized or  unexplored,  presents  so  many  interesting  and 
anomalous  phases  as  does  Russia  and  its  immense  de- 
pendency, Siberia.  The  very  mention  of  this  latter 
tract  of  desert  waste,  its  illimitable  snow-fields,  scintil- 
lating under  a  fugitive  sun  or  stretching  away  in  solemn 
shadows  under  a  leaden  sky  until  it  infringes  upon  a  cir- 
cumambient horizon,  excites  our  wonder  and  gives  us  the 
one  idea  of  dreariness.  But  ah  !  not  only  is  the  wilder- 
ness of  Siberia's  vast  and  lonely  plain  a  topic  which  may 
infuse  the  humblest  pen  with  power  to  write  a  stirring 
chapter  on  wild  nature,  ferocious  beasts,  and  storm-beaten 
shores  freighted  with  wrecks  of  hardy  adventurers  ;  would 
that  there  were  no  more  horrible  stones  of  fact  connected 
with  the  history  of  that  country  which,  from  infancy,  has 
been  an  immense  prison,  or  battle-ground — a  grave-yard 
of  men's  ambitions,  the  penal  ground  for  patriotic  expia- 
tion !  The  MIXES  !  There  is  no  word  that  so  thrills  the 
Russian  heart  as  this.  "  To  the  Bastile!"  uttered  during 
the  most  dreadful  days  in  French  history,  carried  with  it 
but  the  shadow  of  a  horror  compared  with  that  awful 
sentence:  "To  the  Mines  of  Siberia!"  in  Russia.  In 
France,  Marat  could  only  order  his  victims  guillotined, 
and  death  ca:ne  speedily  and  painlessly.  But  in  Siberia 
25 


26  .^  £*•        :  ;  -PURPOSES  AND  AUSPICES  OF 

t  litre  w.as  the  kaout  and  other  instruments  of  torture  add- 
ed to  the  sentence  which  confined  men  and  women  to  a 
life  in  the  mines,  where  no  light  of  day  was  ever  permit- 
ted to  enter,  and  where  the  voice  of  lamentation  could 
never  reach  a  sympathetic  ear. 

The  history  of  Russia,  such  as  has  already  been  writ- 
ten, possesses  for  me  an  interest  felt  for  that  of  no  other 
country  ;  and  since  the  revolutionary  crisis,  which  had  its 
beginning  or  origin  in  the  emancipation  proclamation  of 
Alexander  II.,  such  startling  events  have  occurred  in  that 
nation  that,  being  without  parallel,  they  have  focused  the 
interest  of  the  world,  until  to-day  the  Czar's  dominions 
have  become  a  country  so  alien  in  all  its  aspects  of  civil- 
ization, and  rent  internally  by  such  horrible  atrocities, 
that  its  current  history  is  a  story  replete  with  exciting  sit- 
uations and  horrifying  culminations. 

To  obtain  a  true  conception  of  Russia's  policy,  of  her 
insubordinate  elements,  of  the  Nihilistic  demonstrations, 
of  her  administration  in  dealing  with  the  revolutionists, 
and  lastly,  of  the  exile  life  led  by  so  many  thousand 
persons  in  Siberia,  I  personally  visited  that  country  under 
auspices  peculiarly  favorable  for  the  acquisition  of  infor- 
mation I  specially  desired.  Before  leaving  America  I 
made  application  to  Gen.  Green  B.  Raum,  Commissioner 
of  Internal  Revenue,  Washington,  D.  C.,  with  whom  I 
have  enjoyed  an  intimate  acquaintance  since  boyhood,  for 
such  letters  of  introduction  to  our  representatives  in  Rus- 
sia as  he  might  feel  disposed  to  give.  The  application 
brought  a  response  more  favorable  than  I  had  expected, 
for  forthwith  he  requested  the  Secretary  of  State  to  give 
me  a  letter  which  would  secure  for  me  the  consideration 
of  our  Russian  Minister,  and,  added  to  this,  the  General 
kindly  wrote  a  personal  letter  to  Minister  Hunt,  which 
accredited  correspondence  is  herewith  appended  : 


MY  TRIP  THROUGH  RUSSIA.  27 

DEPARTMENT  OF  STATE,  1 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  ;June  21,  1882.  / 


The  Honorable 

WILLIAM  H.  HUNT, 

St.  Petersburg. 
Sir: 

At  the  request  of  the  Honorable  Green  B.  Raum,  I  introduce  to 
your  acquaintance  and  commend  to  your  courtesy  the  bearer  of  this 
letter,  Mr.  James  W.  Buel  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  who  is  about  to  visit 
Russia  for  the  purpose  of  observing  and  writing  upon  the  institutions 
of  that  country. 

I  am  Sir, 
Your  obedient  servant, 

J.  0.  BANCROFT  DAVIS, 

Acting  Secretary. 

At  the  time  of  writing  this  letter,  Mr.  Davis  informed 
me  that  as  Mr.  Hunt  had  only  recently  received  the  ap- 
pointment as  Minister  to  Kussia,  and  had  only  departed 
t\vo  weeks  previously  to  take  up  his  official  residence, 
it  was  probable  that  I  would  find  Hon.  Wickham  Hoff- 
man still  acting  Charge  d"  Affaires  on  my  arrival  at  St. 
Petersburg,  so  he  kindly  gave  me  the  following  addition- 
al letter  : 

DEPARTMENT  OF  STATE,  \ 

WASHINGTON,   D.  C.,  June  21st,  1882.  / 
WICKHAM  HOFFMAN,  Esquire, 
Etc.,  Etc.,  Etc. 

St.  Petersburg. 
8Hr: 

At,  the  request  of  the  Honorable  Green  B.  Raum,  I  introduce  to 
your  acquaintance  and  commend  to  your  courtesy  the  bearer  of  this 
letter,  Mr.  James  W.  Buel,  of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  who  is  about  to  visit 
Jldssia  for  the  purpose  of  observing  and  writing  upon  the  institutions 
i  .f  that  country. 

I  am  Sir,, 

Your  obedient  servant, 

J.  C.  BANCROFT  DAVIS, 

Acting  Secretary. 

Upon  showing  my  letters  from  the  State  Department  to 
Gen.  Eaum  he  at  once  wrote  and  handed  me  the  follow- 
ing : 


28  PURPOSES  AXD  AUSPICES  OF 

TREASURY  DEPARTMENT. 

OFFICE  OK  INTERNAL  RBVENI; 
WASHINGTON,  June  21,  1882. 


HON.  WM.  HUNT, 

U.  S.  Minister  to  Russia, 

St.  Petersburg,  Russia. 
Dear  Sir  : 

Mr.  James  W.  Buel  bears  letters  of  introduction  to  yourself  and  to 
Mr.  Hoffman  from  Hon.  J.  Bancroft  Davis,  acting  Secretary  of  State. 
I  write  to  commend  Mr.  Buel  to  your  favorable  consideration, 
and  to  request  that  you  will  introduce  him  into  official  circles  so  as  to 
enable  him  to  make  a  study  of  the  Russian  Government  and  Russian 
society. 

I  have  known  Mr.  Buel  [from  boyhood  and  know  that  he  visits 
Russia  with  the  best  intentions.  He  will  be  no  agitator  against  the 
Government,  as  some  Americans  have  been  in  Ireland,  and  he  will  not 
betray  any  just  confidence  that  may  be  reposed  in  him  by  the  author- 
ities. I  have  the  honor  to  be, 

Very  Respectfully, 

GREEN  B.  RAUM. 

With  this  courteous  correspondence  I  felt  assured  that, 
notwithstanding  the  difficulties  which  attached  to  the 
mission  I  was  about  to  undertake,  my  investigations  could 
be  prosecuted  without  fear  of  serious  molestation,  for  I 
considered  these  letters  an  implied  promise  from  my  gov- 
ernment to  protect  me  so  long  as  I  committed  110  overt 
act  against  Russia,  or  manifested  no  revolutionary  sympa- 
thy, although  hundreds  of  persons  have  felt  the  heavy 
hand  of  the  Czar's  police  for  much  less  offence  than  an 
inquiry  respecting  Nihilism,  two  of  which  instances  I 
must  refer  to : 

Some  time  during  the  year  1881  an  American  citizen 
arrived  in  St.  Petersburg,  as  a  seaman,  without  a  pass- 
port. Without  reporting  his  case  to  our  Minister  or  per- 
mitting him  to  send  any  communication  to  our  represent- 
ative, the  Russian  authorities  searched  the  unfortunate 
man  and  found  upon  his  person  a  letter  of  recommenda- 
tion from  his  employers  certifying  to  his  sober  and  indus- 


MY  TRIP  THROUGH  RUSSIA.  29 

trious  qualities.  This  letter  was  from  the  Kemington 
Fire  Arms  Company,  and  this  trivial  fact  the  Russian  of- 
ficers used  as  a  pretext  for  holding  the  man  as  a  suspect. 
They  said  :  "  You  are  a  revolutionist,  and  have  been  en- 
gaged making  cartridges  and  arms  for  the  Turkish  Gov- 
erment  to  be  used  against  us."  They  argued  this  way 
because  the  Turkish  Government  during  the  war  with 
Russia  had  purchased  large  quantities  of  war  munitions 
from  Remington  &  Sons.  The  poor  fellow  was  taken  to 
the  Fortress  prison  and  there  confined  on  a  diet  of  bread 
and  water  for  an  entire  week  before  the  facts  accident- 
ally came  to  the  knowledge  of  our  Charge  d' Affaires, 
who  fiercely  remonstrated  at  the  outrage,  whereupon  the 
innocent  captive  was  liberated. 

Another  instance  of  even  greater  hardship  and  injus- 
tice, is  the  present  confinement  of  a  Jewish- American 
citizen  who  entered  Siberia  without  a  special  permit  from 
the  Imperial  Police,  not  knowing  that  such  was  required. 
It  is  easy  to  pass  the  Russian  frontier  into  Siberia,  but  it 
is  a  most  perplexing  and  next  to  impossible  matter  to  get 
out  again,  and  this  American  Jew  having  business  in  Si- 
beria, and  being  provided  with  a  passport  into  Russia,  in- 
nocently crossed  the  Urals,  and  at  the  first  place  he  was 
called  upon  to  show  his  papers,  he  was  apprehended  and 
thrown  into  solitary  confinement,  where  he  remained  for 
six  months,  notwithstanding  the  correspondence  that  has 
passed  between  the  Russian  authorities  and  our  minister 
concerning  his  imprisonment.  It  is  but  justice  to  state, 
however,  that  Minister  Hunt  expressed  to  me  his  doubts 
about  the  prisoner  being  an  American  citizen,  though  he 
claims  protection  from  our  government ;  but  the  hard- 
ships and  injustice  complained  of  grow  out  of  the  priso- 
ner's inability,  through  lack  of  any  privileges,  to  prove 
his  citizenship  beyond  the  passport  he  held,  which,  how 


30  PURPOSES  AKD  AUSPICES  OF 

ever,  is  not  received  as  evidence  because  the  period  of  its 
effectiveness  had  expired  at  the  time  of  his  arrest,  pass- 
ports being  good  for  only  six  months  from  the  date  af- 
fixed to  the  visa — Russian  consul's  certificate. 

Many  other  instances  of  intolerance  might,  and  will  be 
cited  in  the  following  chapters,  and  hundreds  of  cases  of 
unmerciful  injustice  will  be  described  to  show  how  Rus- 
sia maintains  her  autocracy  and  martial  law,  while  her 
people  groan  beneath  the  burdens  of  misgovernrnent  and 
repression . 

Several  books  on  life  in  Russia  and  Siberia  have 
appeared  since  the  Turko-Russian  war,  but  few  that  I 
have  read  treat  the  subject  in  a  manner  that  sug- 
gests a  personal  visit  to  those  countries  by  the  authors. 
Mackenzie  Wallace  wrote  a  very  excellent  and  reliable 
work  on  Russia,  but  it  appeared  before  the  war,  and 
though  a  standard  history  at  the  time  of  its  first  publica- 
tion, it  cannot  be  accepted  as  a  history  of  Russia  of  to- 
day, so  great  have  the  changes  been  since  that  time. 
During  the  present  year  a  work  has  appeared  from  the 
pen  of  Henry  Lansdell,  entitled  "Through  Siberia," 
that  has  met  with  much  favor  because  it  treats  of  a  coun- 
try about  which  so  little  is  known,  and  because  the  au- 
thor claims  to  have  been  a  missionary  and  philanthropist. 
The  facts  are,  however,  that  this  work,  I  know,  from 
observations  made  while  in  Siberia,  to  be  a  pure  fiction 
so  far  as  it  relates  to  convict  life  ;  its  statements  concern- 
ing the  prisons  of  Siberia  are  almost  as  wide  of  the 
truth  as  any  of  Munchausen's  choice  yarns.  I  do  not  say 
this  through  any  prejudice,  because  I  never  saw  Mr.  Lans- 
dell, and  therefore  have  no  private  reasons  for  condemn- 
ing his  work.  The  London  Graphic,  reviewing  the 
book,  pronounces  it  an  aggregated  canard  throughout. 
But  I  particularize  Mr.  Lansdell' s  fault  only  because  my 


MY  TRir  THROUGH  RUSSIA.  31 

declarations  and  descriptions  in  the  succeeding  pages  are 
directly  opposite  to  his  assertions  respecting  the  treatment 
of  exile  prisoners  in  Siberia,  and  because  the  Russian 
Government,  having  endorsed  his  work,  might  lead  un- 
thinking readers  to  suspect  me  of  misrepresentations  ;  I 
therefore  write  this  to  anticipate  any  reflections  of  this 
character.  I  was  told  by  many  prominent  persons  in 
Russia  that  the  Government  purchased  several  thousand 
copies  of  Mr.  Lausdell's  book  and  has  been  active  in 
circulating  it  through  several  countries,  because  it  repre, 
sents  convict  life  in  Siberia  as  an  existence  of  elegant 
ease  and  epicurean  luxury,  while  it  greatly  disparages  the 
treatment  of  prisoners  in  England  and  America. 

What  I  have  written  concerning  Russia  is  wholly 
without  malice,  for  I  must  acknowledge  a  treatment 
while  in  that  country  of  rare  courtesy  and  consideration. 
I  can  in  a  great  measure  excuse  the  Government  for  the 
policy  it  pursues  in  dealing  with  its  criminals.  I  can 
readily  understand  how  difficult  it  is  for  a  ruler  educated 
to  autocracy ;  one  whose  remote  ancestors  were  Czars 
before  him,  with  power  so  absolute  as  to  repel  advice 
from  their  own  counsellors,  except  as  it  was  asked  for ; 
one  who  has  been  reared  in  the  belief  that  all  the  world 
owes  homage  to  him — I  can  understand  why  such  an  one 
refuses  his  ear  to  the  complaints  of  his  subjects,  particu- 
larly when  they  demand  a  constitution  which  would  lead 
to  an  abridgment  of  the  crown  prerogatives  whilst  con- 
ferring the  first  taste  of  liberty  to  a  people  who  never 
drew  a  breath  of  freedom.  Besides,  to  acknowledge  the 
policy  of  a  revolutionary  body,  however  weak,  is  always 
a  dangerous  precedent,  and  destructive  in  its  influences. 
France  is  an  illustration  of  this  fact,  and  governments 
have  ever  regarded  it  safer  to  employ  the  full  strength  of 
their  opposition  by  arms,  rather  than  recognize  any  prin- 


32  PURPOSES  AND  AUSPICES  OF 

ciple,  however  inconsequential,  when  incorporated  in  an 
edict  promulgated  by  insurrectionists.  In  this  is  found 
ample  reason  why  the  Czar  confronts  Nihilism  with  ar- 
mor and  steel,  and  this  has  brought  on  an  internecine 
conflict  which  fills  the  very  atmosphere  of  Russia  with 
blood,  and  stamps  every  highway  in  that  miserable  na- 
tion with  red-handed  murder. 

It  is  my  purpose  to  describe,  in  a  dispassionate,  ungar- 
nished  way,  the  crimes  of  Nihilism,  to  give  some  of  the 
previously  unwritten  history  of  Russia,  and  to  truthfully 
tell  what  I  know  concerning  exile  life  in  Siberia,  with  ob- 
servations on  the  people  and  mode  of  living  in  that  won- 
derful country.  I  have  had  every  advantage  for  ascer- 
taining all  the  facts,  and  am  frank  to  say  that  no  ex- 
cuse is  left  me  if  I  have  made  a  single  misstatement  in  the 
narrative  following. 

J.  W.  BUEL. 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM. 


CHAPTER  I. 

I  left  America  on  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  June,  for 
St.  Petersburg,  going  by  way  of  London,  thence  to  Hull, 
and  at  the  latter  English  port  I  engaged  passage  on  a 
Wilson  line  steamer  (Marsden)  which  took  me  by  way  of 
the  North  and  Baltic  seas.  The  latter  part  of  the  voyage 
was  particularly  pleasant,  and  occupied  less  than  six 
days.  We  put  into  the  port  of  Cronstadt,  which  is  eigh- 
teen miles  from  St.  Petersburg,  as,  owing  to  the  extreme 
shallow  water,  vessels  of  any  considerable  burden  cannot 
approach  nearer  the  Russian  capital.  Cronstadt  is  a 
small  town  built  upon  an  island,  but  though  it  has  no 
natural  defences,  .it  is  next  to  Gibralter  in  fortress 
strength.  Stretching  across  the  Finland  mouth  to  the 
two  mainlands,  are  ten  forts  of  almost  impregnable 
strength,  and  counting  the  island  fort  of  solid  masonry 
there  are  mounted  more  than  one  thousand  immense 
guns,  the  fire  from  all  of  which  may  be  concentrated  on 
any  point  of  entrance  to  the  Gulf.  So  perfect  are  the 
defences  that  no  fleet,  however  powerful,  could  approach 
within  effective  range  of  St.  Petersburg  without  first  de- 
stroying the  ten  strongest  artificial  forts  of  the  world ; 
while  to  these  defences  is  added  a  channel  of  only  nine 
feet,  which  makes  the  city  safe  from  invasion  by  sea. 
A  canal  is  now  being  dug,  however,  by  American  contrac_ 

33 


EXILE  LIFE  IK  SIBERIA.  35 

tors,  from  opposite  Peterhoff  to  the  Neva,  which  will 
admit  heavy  ocean  tonnage,  but  it  will  be  guarded  by  the 
strongest  engines  of  war  that  can  be  brought  into  requi- 
sition. 

Upon  landing  at  Cronstadt  our  vessel  was  boarded  by 
five  customs  officials  and  passport  examiners,  one  of 
whom  detected  an  informality  in  my  passport,  which 
caused  my  apprehension  as  a  "  suspect."  When  leaving 
Washington  City  I  neglected  to  have  the  Russian  Con- 
sul's visa  affixed  to  my  papers,  and  this  omission  sub- 
jected me  to  much  suspicion  from  a  Government  that 
naturally  supposes  every  one  a  revolutionist  who  is  not 
burdened  with  incontestible  proofs  of  innocence. 

I  would  never  have  been  permitted  to  set  foot  in  Russia 
but  for  the  letters  I  bore  from  the  State  and  Treasury 
Departments,  upon  the  presentation  of  which  I  was  given 
a  paper  containing  my  promise  to  report  in  person  at 
the  Third  Section  in  St.  Petersburg,  on  the  following  morn- 
ing. I  was  then  allowed  to  proceed  to  the  city  and  take 
lodgings  at  the  Hotel  de  France,  but  under  the  surveil- 
lance of  the  Imperial  Police.  No  hotel  in  Russia  is  allowed 
to  entertain  any  one,  whether  a  native  or  foreign  sub- 
ject, without  first  securing  their  passport,  which  must  be 
registered  with  the  police,  and  the  names  of  all  guests 
must  be  prominently  posted  on  a  blackboard  in  the  hotels 
where  any  one  entering  can  see  them. 

I,  together  with  the  other  passengers,  was  taken  up  to 
the  city  in  a  tender  and  landed  at  the  Custom  House. 
Being  wholly  unacquainted  with  the  Russian  language,  I 
would  have  fared  badly  but  for  assistance  tendered  me 
by  a  fellow-passenger  who  kindly  spoke  for  me.  Ev- 
ery bit  of  paper  I  had,  on  which  there  was  any  writing, 
was  critically  examined  by  a  score  of  underlings  and  then 
conveyed  to  a  higher  functionary  for  inspection  and 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  37 

judgment.  My  things  were  unceremoniously  dumped  out 
and  all  articles  of  clothing  were  searched  with  the  care 
an  old  soldier  manifests  when  looking  for  carnivorous  in- 
sects. 

After  undergoing  the  customs  examination,  I  passed  out 
into  the  street  and  was  immediately  received  by  a  galling 
lire  of  solicitations  from  droshky  drivers,  whose  unintelli- 
gible jabbering  and  strong  entreaties  so  confounded  me 
that  I  knew  not  what;  to  do,  as  my  friend  had  disappeared, 
leaving  me  in  a  condition  which  I  may  well  explain  as 
tongues  and  lungs  everywhere  but  not  a  voice  to  speak  to 
me  intelligently. 

If  there  is  anything  that  will  make  a  cynic  laugh  or 
startle  a  cosmopolite  with  wonder,  it  is  a  droshky  driver 
in  his  quizzical  tout  ensemble.  The  municipal  law  requires 
him  to  wear  a  large,  dark-blue  stole,  gathered  at  the  waist 
by  a  band,  and  on  his  head  he  wears  a  covering  which  is 
half  hat  and  half  cap ;  from  under  this  quaint  head- 
gear emerges  a  profuse  quantity  of  hair  cut  in  a  sharp 
line  all  round.  Hair  cutters  in  Russia  use  a  large  cup 
which  is  inverted  and  placed  over  their  customer's  head, 
and  then,  with  a  large  pair  of  shears,  they  trim  squarely 
around  the  cup's  edge.  The  result  must  necessarily  be 
comical,  especially  since  among  no  other  people  does  the 
hair  grow  so  abundantly. 

When  I  was  first  assailed  by  these  peculiar,  monkish- 
appearing,  but  good-natured  fellows,  and  had  taken  a 
good  look  at  their  peculiar  little  vehicles,  I  could  not  re- 
frain from  laughter,  at  which,  like  a  number  of  imitative 
apes,  they  fell  to  laughing  also.  After  several  minutes 
spent  in  contemplating  my  unhappy  condition,  the  gentle- 
man who  had  assisted  me  in  the  Custom  House,  appeared 
again,  and  engaging  a  carriage  we  drove  together  to  the 
Hotel  de  France,  where  I  was  duly  registered.  My  next 


38 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


step  was  to  engage  a  guide,  which  I  found  in  the  person 
of  Charles  Kuntze,  a  German  who  could  speak  several 
languages,  whose  services  to  me  became  absolutely  ines- 
timable. 


It  so  happened  that  at  the  time  of  my  arrival  in  St. 
Petersburg,  Minister  Hunt  had  not  yet  reached  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  39 

tal,  and  Charge  cT  Affaires  Hoffman  was  on  a  brief  visit 
to  Finland  ;  I  therefore  had  no  other  resource  left  me  ex- 
cept to  obey  orders  and  trust  to  luck.  In  obedience  to  in- 
structions I  called  at  the  Third  Section,  where  I  was  as- 
sured that  my  passport  would  be  waiting  me,  but  I  was 
referred  to  another  place,  and  from  there  to  still  another, 
and  then  back  again  to  the  Third  Section.  This  shuttle- 
cock business  continued  active  for  four  days,  when  at 
length  I  found  that  it  was  a  way  they  had  in  Russia  ;  that 
I  was  thus  kept  in  momentary  expectancy  until  the  au- 
thorities could  take  information  on  me  and  definitely  de- 
termine my  business  in  the  country.  At  the  expiration 
of  the  fourth  day  Mr.  Hoffman  returned,  and  upon  re- 
porting my  case  to  him  he  immediately  procured  my 
passport  and  relieved  me  from  further  police  surveillance. 
The  Third  Section  is  one  of  the  most  noted  institu- 
tions in  Russia  ;  simple,  unpretentious  in  title,  but  within 
its  now  crumbling  walls  have  been  enacted  some  of  the 
most  shocking  tragedies  known  in  history.  •  It  is  a  build- 
ing occupying  one  entire  square  and  divided  off  into  pub- 
lic offices,  audience  chambers,  and  prisons,  though  it  is 
no  longer  used  for  the  detention  of  criminals.  Under 
the  iron  rule  of  Nicholas  I.,  those  who  were  ordered  to  the 
Third  Section  rarely  ever  breathed  the  air  of  freedom 
again,  their  sentence  being  either  death  or  transportation . 
The  place  derives  its  name  from,  the  fact  that  the  city 
was  formerly  divided  into  three  police  districts,  all  under 
the  Minister  of  Police,  whose  office  was  in  the  Third  Sec- 
tion. It  is  told  by  those  resident  of  St.  Petersburg  at 
the  time  that  Emperor  Nicholas  I.  had  a  private  office  in 
the  Third  Section  where  it  was  his  custom  to  repair  at  a 
certain  hour  each  day  for  the  purpose  of  keeping  him- 
self thoroughly  advised  011  all  matters  appertaining  to  the 
police  administration.  It  is  also  declared  that  there  was 


KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  41 

a  trap  door  in  the  floor  of  his  office  which  was  used  for  a 
singular  purpose,  viz:  when  any  female  member  of  the 
reigning  family  was  discovered  inveighing  against  his  ad- 
ministration— which  was  by  no  means  an  uncommon  oc- 
currence— the  offender  was  ordered  to  appear  before  him 
at  his  office.  When  there  he  gave  such  persons  much 
fatherly  advice  about  their  transgressions  and,  at  a  sig- 
nal, the  trap  door,  upon  which  they  were  made  uncon- 
sciously to  stand,  suddenly  gave  way  precipitating  the 
woman  to  her  arm-pits.  While  in  this  constrained  posi- 
tion, unable  to  move,  she  was  severely  lashed  by  a  per- 
son stationed  underneath.  In  this  wise  the  offender 
was  prevented  from  knowing  who  was  administering  the 
castigation,  nor  could  the  person  below  know  whom  he 
was  punishing. 

Upon  meeting  Mr.  Hoffman  I  presented  him  with  the 
letters  I  bore,  as  already  quoted,  and  then  asked  him  for 
such  advice  as  he  might  give  that  would  be  serviceable  to 
me.  His  reply  was  a  genuine  surprise,  and  one  which  I 
am  not  likely  to  forget  soon.  Said  he  : 

"  Your  purpose,  I  discover  from  Gen.  Raum's  letter, 
is  to  gather  facts  concerning  Nihilism." 

1  told  him  that  was  chiefly  the  object  of  my  visit  to 
Russia,  whereupon  he  replied  : 

"  If  my  advice  is  worth  anything,  I  will  freely  give  it 
to  you,  and  it  is  this  :  stop  where  you  are;  don't  take  the 
first  step  toward  investigating  that  subject.  The  reason 
I  thus  advise  you  is  because  Russia  is  under  martial  law 
and  the  least  .suspicion  excited  against  one  here  is  liable 
to  be  followed  by  arrest,  and  once  in  the  toils  it  is  next  to 
impossible  to  get  out.  It  matters  not  how  much  any 
government  may  remonstrate  against  the  arrest  of  its 
subjects,  Russia  is  not  prone  to  regard  them.  So,  for  your 
own  safety,  I  say  abandon  the  idea  of  investigating  Ni- 
hilism while  on  Russian  soil." 


42  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANB 

I  thanked  Mr.  Hoffman  for  his  well-intended  advice, 
and  then  replied  : 

"  You  put  the  matter  in  a  very  gloomy  light  indeed, 
much  worse  than  I  expected ;  nevertheless,  I  don't  be- 
lieve it  is  customary  for  an  American  citizen  to  give  up 
a  mission  that  he  has  set  his  head  and  heart  upon  per- 
forming, because  the  sun  has  set  before  his  face." 

He  was  evidently  pleased  with  my  answer,  though  he 
sympathized  with  my  poor  judgment,  for  at  once  he  prof- 
fered such  services  as  he  was  able  to  give,  and  promised 
to  look  after  me  if  I  should  suddenly  disappear.  At  my 
request  he  then  wrote  me  the  following  letter  to  Count 
Tolstoi,  Minister  of  the  Interior,  who  is  also  acting 
Prime  Minister.  During  the  enforced  retirement  of  Al- 
exander III.  Count  Tolstoi  is  practically  the  Czar  of  Rus- 
sia, all  audiences  on  Imperial  business  being  held  with 
the  Count  and  by  him  communicated  personally  to  the 
Czar: 

LEGATION  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

ST.  PETERSBURG,  July  21,  \  ,  QC 
August  2d,  / 1} 

His  Excellency,  COUNT  TOLSTOI, 

Minister  of  the  Interior. 

Mr.  James  W.  Buel,  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  has  come  to  St. 
Petersburg,  bringing  to  Mr.  Hunt  and  myself  letters  of  introduction 
from  the  Secretary  of  State  at  Washington,  stating  that  Mr.  Buel 
comes  to  Russia  with  a  view  of  observing  and  writing  upon  the  insti- 
tutions of  this  country,  and  commending  him  to  our  courtesy. 

Mr.  Buel  himself  tells  me  that  his  work  is  upon  Communism  in  the 
United  States,  and  that  in  this  connection  he  desires  to  investigate 
Communism  in  other  countries  under  whatever  forms  it  may  exist. 
For  this  purpose  he  desires  access  to  certain  unpublised  documents. 
Will  your  Excellency  kindly  give  him  such  facilities  for  his  work  as 
you  may  deem  proper,  and  may  feel  at  liberty  to  give. 

I  take  this  opportunity  to  renew  to  your  Excellency  the  assurance 
of  my  distinguished  consideration. 

WICKHAM  HOFFMAN. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


COUNT  D.  R.  TOLSTOI. 
Minister  of  the  Interior  and  Chief  Councillor  of  the  Czar, 


44  11USSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Before  leaving  St.  Petersburg  in  August,  for  Siberia, 
Hon.  W.  H.  Hunt  arrived  in  the  Russian  capital,  and  pre- 
sented his  credentials  as  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister 
Plenipotentiary  to  the  Court  at  St.  Petersburg.  I  had  a 
very  pleasant  interview  with  him,  and  through  him  and 
Count  Tolstoi  my  request  for  an  interview  with  the  Czar 
was  communicated.  Two  days  later  his  Excellency,  V. 
Pleve,  presented  me  with  an  answer  from  the  Czar,  who 
expressed  regrets  that  he  was  holding  his  annual  confer- 
ence at  Gatchina  Palace  with  his  Generals,  which  would 
not  be  concluded  for  twelve  days,  but  at  the  expiration 
of  that  time  it  would  give  him  great  pleasure  to  re- 
ceive me.  My  time  was  too  limited  to  admit  of  so  long 
a  delay,  as  I  had  already  made  my  preparations  and  en- 
gaged an  interpreter  in  Moscow  to  accompany  me  on  my 
tour  through  Siberia. 

Upon  my  return  to  St.  Petersburg,  in  October,  I  again 
called  on  Minister  Hunt,  who  gave  me  the  following  let- 
ter: 

LEGATION  O"F  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

ST.  PETERSBURG,  October    3,  \1QQO 
October  15, /1} 

The  undersigned  lias  the  honor  to  present  to  his  Excellency  Count 
Tolstoi,  Minister  of  the  Interior,  Mr.  J.  W.  Buel,  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States,  who,  it  is  believed,  has  already  been  accredited  to  his 
Excellency  by  the  late  acting  Charge  d' Affaires  of  this  Legation. 

Mr.  Buel  is  the  bearer  of  letters  from  several  distinguished  func- 
tionaries in  the  United  States,  who  vouch  for  .his  reliability  and  com- 
mend him  to  consideration.  Having  occasion  to  obtain  some  inform- 
ation from  the  authorities  of  His  Imperial  Majesty's  Government, 
Mr.  Buel  is  d  -sirous  of  obtaining  an  interview  with  His  Excellency, 
which  the  undersigned  trusts  may  b^  accorded  him. 

The  undersigned  avails  himself  of  the  opportunity  to  renew  to  His 
Exce Jency  the  assurances  of  his  distinguished  consideration. 

WILLIAM  H.  HUNT, 
Envoy  Extraordinary,  Etc.,  Etc., 

of  the  United  States  of  America. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


45 


HON.  W.  11.  HUNT.  MINISTER  PLENIPOTENTIARY  TO  RUSSIA. 


46  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

It  is  the  etiquette  of  the  Court  that  when  a  foreign 
subject  desires  an  interview  with  any  member  of  the 
Imperial  Court,  his  request  must  come  through  a  letter 
from  the  representative  of  the  country  to  which  the 
applicant  belongs,  although  he  may  have  been  previously 
recommended.  This  is  the  reason  this,  second  letter 
from  the  Legation  was  obtained  and  presented.  The  two 
dates  affixed  to  these  letters  represent  the  difference  be- 
tween the  English  and  Eussian  calendars,  the  latter  still 
holding  to  the  ancient  style,  which  is  twelve  days  behind 
the  calendars  of  all  other  civilized  nations. 

At  this  season  Minister  Tolstoi,  who  had  his  resi- 
dence in  the  suburbs  of  St.  Petersburg,  gave  audi- 
ences only  twice  each  week,  and  as  I  was  misinformed 
as  to  the  days  he  had  set  for  this  purpose,  it  was  not  un- 
til the  third  day  that  I  called  to  present  my  letter.  It 
chanced,  however,  that  the  Count  was  not  in,  but  I  was  re- 
ceived, nevertheless,  by  His  Excellency,  Y.  Pleve,  Direc- 
tor of  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  and  Privy  Counsellor  to 
the  Emperor,  and  Minister  of  Police.  I  was  pleased  to 
find  him  a  very  affable  gentleman,  and  through  my  inter- 
preter he  promised  me  every  aid  I  might  require  in  pros- 
ecuting my  investigations.  After  conversing  with  him 
for  several  minutes  he  made  an  engagement  to  meet  me 
again  on  the  following  day,  and  also  to  present  me  to  the 
Prefect  of  Police  on  the  Monday  following — this  being 
Saturday. 

At  the  time  appointed  I  met  the  Minister  of  Police 
again,  and  also  the  Prefect  of  Police,  both  of  whom 
gave  me  considerable  information,  and  at  their  request 
I  submitted  in  writing  a  series  of  questions  on  Nihil- 
ism, the  answers  to  which  they  promised  to  give  me 
on  the  Wednesday  following.  Parting  with  them  I  left 
my  letter  of  introduction  with  Count  Tolstoi's  secretary, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  47 

and  on  the  succeeding  day  received  a  note  from  the 
Count,  written  in  French,  saying  he  would  be  pi  eased  to 
see  me  at  his  office  at  eleven  o'clock,  Tuesday. 

I  was  punctual  in  keeping  the  appointment,  but  upon 
presenting  my  card  to  his  valet  I  was  told  that  it  was  et- 
iquette of  the  Court  to  receive  only  persons  with  whom 
appointments  are  previously  made,  and  that  no  one  is  ad- 
mitted unless  he  appear  in  Court  dress — dress  suit. 
Though  embarrassed  somewhat  at  first,  I  was  equal  to  the 
occasion,  for  I  sent  my  regrets  to  the  Count,  coupling 
them  with  the  observation  that  in  America  every  citizen 
is  a  sovereign,  and  that  with  us  dress  suits  are  used  only 
on  party  occasions  ;  that  it  was  with  tinexpressible  cha- 
grin I  was  compelled  to  acknowledge  the  fact  that  I  nev- 
er owned  a  dress  suit.  In  a  moment  after,  the  valet  re- 
turned and  ushered  me  into  the  Count's  presence,  who 
advanced  and  greeted  me  in  so  cordial  a  manner, 
laughingly  commenting  upon  his  valet's  rigid  Court  man- 
nerism, that  I  entirely  forgot  the  presence  of  royalty, 
and  entered  into  conversation  with  a  freedom  from  all  re- 
straint. 

Count  Tolstoi  spoke  with  some  warmth  concerning  the 
reflections  cast  upon  Russia  by  other  civilized  countries, 
and  earnestly  denied  the  insinuation  that  the  administra- 
tion was  lacking  in  mercy  or  that  every  measure  and  pol- 
icy pursued  was  not  thoroughly  justified.  He  complained 
that  Russia  was  the  most  misrepresented  country  on 
the  globe,  and  as  an  earnest  of  his  assertions  he  prof- 
fered to  me  any  assistance  I  might  need  to  learn  any  and 
all  facts  appertaining  to  Nihilism,  and  the  manner  in  which 
the  laws  are  administered.  He  gave  me  access  to  the  Im- 
perial Library  containing  all  the  political  records,  and  as- 
sured me  that  I  might  talk  and  enquire  about  Nihilism 
without  the  least  fear  of  molestation,  though  he  admitted 


48  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

that  without  a  disclosure  of  my  purpose  I  might  have  en- 
countered some  trouble.  My  sole  purpose  in  visiting  the 
Count  was  to  procure  from  him  a  promise  that  I  would 
not  be  subjected  to  suspicion  or  annoyance  by  reason  of 
any  inquiries  I  might  institute,  and  to  this  end  I  frankly 
told  him  the  purposes  of  my  visit  and  promised  to  treat 
Nihilism  in  my  work  with  all  the  fairness  that  my  com- 
prehension of  the  subject  permitted.  Before  leaving  him 
he  asked  me  as  a  favor  to  incorporate  in  my  book  the 
Government's  position  taken  in  the  four  leading  politi- 
cal trials,  viz :  the  trial  of  the  Emperor's  assassins;  of 
those  suspected  of  attempting  to  blow  up  the  Winter 
Palace;  of  the  assassins  of  Gen.  Melikoff ;  and  the  trial 
of  Yera  Zassulitch,  who  shot  Gen.  Trepoff,  Minister  of 
Police.  I  told  him  I  should  be  glad  to  do  him  such  a 
favor  if  he  would  prepare  the  matter ;  this  he  agreed  to 
do,  and  to  transmit  the  manuscript  through  our  consul  to 
me  in  America,  which  promise,  however,  he  did  not  ful- 
fill, and  I  am  therefore  absolved  from  the  obligation. 

On  Wednesday,  the  day  following  my  interview  with 
Count  Tolstoi,  I  called  on  Minister  Pleve  again,  who  gave 
me  answers  to  the  questions  I  had  prepared,  but  they 
were  of  an  indefinite  character,  in  fact  evasive,  and  of 
no  value,  though  Count  Tolstoi  had  also  promised  that 
the  questions  I  had  submitted — with  one  .exception — 
should  be  answered  fully.  The  question  to  which  direct 
exceptions  were  taken,  was  this  : 

6 «  Explain  why  noble  families  sympathize  with  the  Ni- 
hilists?" 

This,  I  was  told,  involved  the  entire  administration  of 
Alexander  II.  and  to  explain  it  fully  would  expose  cer- 
tain matters  which  the  Government  held  as  strictly  pri- 
vate. 

I  was  very  much  interested  in  Minister  Pleve,  because 
of  the  important  part  he  acted  in  the  most  thrilling 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


49 


drama  of  Russian  history,  and  I  spent  nearly  an  hour  in 
a  most  agreeable  conversation  with  him,  though  we  had 
to  talk  through  my  interpreter.  At  the  time  of  the 
Czar's  assassination  he  was  in  very  high  repute  as  a  skil- 
ful detective,  and  upon  the  removal  of  Gen.  Trcpoff— 
after  recovering  from  the  wound  inflicted  by  Vera  Zas- 
sulitch — Mons.  Pleve  was  appointed  Minister  of  Police. 
The  assassination  of  the  Czar  brought  his  detective  skill 


HIS  EXCELLENCY,  VAJESLAF  KONSTANTINOVITCH  PLEVE,  MINISTER  OF  POLICE. 

into  service  again,  and  it  was  through  his  ingenuity  that 
six  of  the  accomplices  were  apprehended  and  brought  to 
trial.  His  last  act  of  great  public  consequence  was  to 
affix  his  signature  to  the  death  sentence  of  the  assassins, 
which  many  believed  no  officer  had  the  courage  to 
do,  because  of  the  threats  made  in  hundreds  of  anony- 
mous communications  to  kill  every  officer  remotely  con- 


50  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

cerned  in  the  executions.  But  Pleve  did  not  hesitate,  and 
while  his  life  is  yet  liable  to  pay  the  forfeit  of  that  act, 
he  takes  few  if  any  precautions  to  guard  against  assas- 
sination. 

I  asked  him  for  his  photograph  for  use  in  my  book, 
and  he  promised  to  have  one  taken  and  send  it  to  me  at 
an  early  day,  a  promise  which  he  kept,  as  is  seen  in  the 
following  letter : 

ST.  PETERSBOURG,  Octobre  9,  1882. 
MONSIEUR  : 

Confarmement  a  votre  desir,  je  vous  envoie  ci-joint  ma  photo- 
graphie  en  vous  priant  de  recevoir  1'assurance  de  mes  sentiment? 
distingues.  V.  PELVE. 

P.  S. — Les  notes  promises  vous  seront  envoyees  sans  peu. 

TRANSLATION. 

ST.  PETERSBURG,  October  9,  1882. 
SIR: 

In  accordance  with  your  desire,  I  send  you  herewith  my  photo- 
graph, wishing  you  to  receive  the  assurance  of  my  high  regard. 

V.  PLEVE. 
P.  S. — The  notes  promised  you  will  be  sent  in  a  little  while. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  51 


CHAPTER  II. 

PROVIDED  with  what  I  considered  a  complete  protection 
from  officious  servants  of  the  Government,  I  set  about 
gathering  statistics  and  familiarizing  myself  with  the 
social  and  political  life  of  Russia  since  the  accession  to 
power  of  the  Romanoffs.  I  was  somewhat  surprised  to 
learn  that  many  interesting  portions  of  Russian  history 
have  never  been  given  to  the  world,  because  of  their 
reflections  on  the  ruling  family,  and  I  now  take  what  I 
conceive  to  be  commendable  pride  in.  presenting  several 
material  incidents  for  the  first  time  in  print.  It  is  essen- 
tial to  the  thorough  understanding  of  the  causes  which 
have  combined  to  render  Russia  so  unhappy,  by  giving 
life  to  a  movement  that  is  without  precedent  or  simili- 
tude, that  at  least  a  brief  or  outline  history  of  the  coun- 
try should  be  familiar  to  the  reader,  and  it  is  this  which 
shall  be  my  excuse  for  presenting  it  here  ;  added  to  this 
general  history  are  several  facts  which,  so  far  as  my 
information  extends,  were  never  before  published. 

The  Russian  Empire  embraces  an  area  of  8,444,766 
square  miles,  or  considerable  more  than  twice  the  area  of 
all  our  States  and  Territories.  This  vast  region,  which 
extends  from  the  arctic  to  the  torrid  zone,  has  an  esti- 
mated population  of  85,000,000,  and  though  the  most 
fertile  and  extensive  agricultural  country  in  the  world, 
there  are  proportionately  fewer  persons  following  pastoral 
pursuits  in  Russia  than  in  any  other  civilized  nation. 

The  Empire  is  divided  into  about  one  hundred  govern- 
ments, which  are  ruled  directly  by  Governors  whose  pow- 
ers, especially  in  Eastern  Siberia,  are  almost  absolute. 
Of  these  governments  fifty  are  in  Europe,  having  a  pop- 
ulation of  66,000,000  ;  Poland  contains  6,000,000  souls  - 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  53 

Finland,  2,000,000;  the  Caucasus,  5,000,000.  Siberia 
proper  has  a  population  of  4,000,000,  and  Central  Asia 
3,000,000.  These  are  approximate  figures  based  on  the 
census  of  1880.  In  this  broad  extent  of  country  about 
two-thirds  of  the  entire  population  profess  the  Greek 
religion.  The  Dissenters  number  about  one  million ; 
the  Roman  Catholics  two  and  one-half  millions  ;  Protes- 
tants and  Mohammedans  about  the  same  as  the  Cath- 
olics ;  Jews,  two  millions.  There  are  also  one  quarter 
of  a  million  Pagans,  worshipping  idols  ;  fifty  thousand 
Armenians,  and  about  ten  thousand  Scopsi,  a  denomina- 
tion that  will  be  described  fully  hereafter. 

Russia's  national  debt,  since  the  loan  of  1882,  is  about 
four  billion  roubles — the  paper  rouble  being  equivalent 
to  fifty  cents,  makes  the  total  debt,  in  United  States 
currency,  two  billion  dollars.  The  expenses  of  the  Gov- 
ernment in  1881  were  nine  hundred  million  roubles,  two 
hundred  millions  of  which  were  army  appropriations. 

The  Emperor  is  allowed  twenty  million  roubles  annu- 
ally for  the  support  of  the  forty-four  members  of  the 
royal  family.  Russia  now  has  a  mobilized  army,  ready  at 
any  time  to  be  called  out  for  service,  of  over  two  million 
men  ;  and  her  fleet,  consisting  of  two  hundred  and  sixty- 
three  vessels,  carries  sixteen  hundred  and  two  guns. 

The  original  settlers  of  Russia  were  Sclavonians,  whose 
history  in  the  Empire  dates  from  about  B.  C.  400.  A 
century  later  they  founded  the  cities  of  Novgorod  the 
Great,  and  Kief — both  of  which  cities  afterward  became 
capitals  of  the  country — and  Ilrnen.  Kief  has  always  been 
regarded  as  the  Holy  City,  to  which  annual  pilgrimages 
are  made  for  worship. 

This  ancient  capital,  though  much  of  its  former  glory 
has  departed,  is  still  one  of  the  chief  places  in  Russia  ; 
among  its  many  squalid  appearing  buildings,  always  sug- 
4 


54 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  55 

gestive  of  great  poverty,  is  a  palace  provided,  and  still 
maintained,  for  the  Imperial  family.  In  Russia  there  are 
twenty-one  palaces  kept  for  the  exclusive  use  of  the  Czar, 
many  of  which  never  once  sheltered  his  Majesty  ;  they  are 
always  kept  in  readiness  for  him,  however,  being  attended 
by  hundreds  of  servants,  and  having  stables  containing 
many  fine  horses.  I  was  surprised  to  learn  this,  and 
upon  asking  why  such  a  useless  extravagance  was  per- 
mitted, was  answered  :  "  The  Czar  is  supposed  to  look 
after  the  interests  of  his  entire  Empire  ;  his  presence, 
therefore,  may  be  expected  at  any  time  in  any  place 
therein  ;  so.  palaces  are  provided  for  his  entertainment  in 
various  parts  of  Russia  in  order  that  at  no  time  may  he 
have  to  lodge  in  apartments  not  befitting  his  Majesty." 
This  answer  quite  satisfied  me. 

The  earliest  Government  of  Russia  was  a  Republic, 
which  continued  for  about  one  thousand  years,  when,  in 
851,  a  violent  political  disturbance  took  place  which 
divided  the  Republic  into  revolutionary  territories  and 
inaugurated  a  warfare  that  threatened  extermination. 
The  Republic  continued  to  exist  in  name,  however,  until 
8(>2,  when  a  council,  chosen  from  the  various  factions, 
with  the  view  of  conciliating  differences  and  protecting 
the  country  from  invasions,  which  neighboring  tribes 
threatened,  convened  at  Novgorod,  and  after  lengthy 
deliberations  decided  to  invite  a  Varago-Russian,  named 
Rurik,  to  accept  the  sovereignty,  which  he  did,  and  Rus- 
sia then  became  an  Empire,  Novgorod  remaining  the 
capital  of  the  new  Government. 

There  is  very  little  history  known  connected  with  the 
Rurik  dynasty.  Vladimir  was  the  greatest  sovereign  of 
that  House.  It  was  he  who  introduced  Christianity  into 
the  Empire  in  980,  and  at  his  death,  which  occurred  in 
1015,  he  was  buried  at  Kief,  and  the  church  honored 


RUS8IAN  NIHILISM  ANI> 


EXILE   LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


57 


his  name  by  declaring  him  a  saint.  Dimetrius  was  also 
a  prominent  ruler  in  the  Rurik  dynasty,  and  he  is  re- 
garded as  a  saint  by  the  orthodox  church.  It  was  Dime- 
triits  who  founded  Moscow  in  the  twelfth  century.  A 
portion  of  his  skull,  the  size  of  a  silver  half-dollar,  is 
still  preserved  and  exposed  to  view  in  the  Royal  Chapel  at 
Moscow.  Every  day  hundreds  of  pious  Russians  visit 
this  chapel  and  reverently  kiss  the  ghastly  relic,  murmur- 
ing their  prayers,  and  crossing  themselves  at  the  same 
time.  It  is  said  that  upon  the  occasion  of  a  visit  to  this 
chapel  by  an  American  lady,  seeing  so  strange  and  dis- 
gusting a  performance  by  so  many  mouths,  she  grew 
sick  and  vomited.  The  act,  as  I  saw  it  performed  by 
dozens  during  my  visit  to  Moscow,  affected  me  almost 
as  seriously  as  it  did  the  lady  referred  to. 

The  house  of  Rurik  continued  to  rule  Russia  until  the 
year  101.-),  when  an  interregnum  occurred,  owing  to  the 
fa<-t  that  there  was  neither  issue  nor  hereditary  branch 
to  succeed  the  last  ruler.  The  Empire  continued,  how- 
ever, by  the  election  of  Michael  Faodorvitch  Romanoff 
as  Emperor,  who  ruled  from  the  year  1613  until  1645. 
He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Alexis  Michaelovitch,  who 
wa*  the  father  of  Peter  the  Great.  His  reign  continued 
from  16-15  until  1676.  The  other  rulers  then  came  in  the 
order  named. 

Feodor  Alexovitch,  1676-1682.  Ivan  Alexovitch  the 
V.,  who  was  an  idiot,  being  senior  brother  of  Peter 
Alexovitch  (Peter  the  Great),  the  Government  became 
a  duarchy  until  the  former's  death,  which  occurred  in 
1606,  when  Peter  the  Great,  who  was  in  fact  ruler  from 
1682,  continued  on  the  throne  until  his  death  in  1725. 

Catharine  I.,  wife  of  Peter  the  Great,  ruled  from  1725 
until  1727,  when  she  was  poisoned  by  Count  Ostermann 

Peter  II.,  nephew  of  Peter  the  Great,  1727  until  1730. 


58  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Anna  Ivanovana,  niece  of  Peter  the  Great,  ruled  from 
1730  until  1740,  when  she  was  banished  to  Siberia  and 
died  in  exile. 

Ivan  Antonovitch  succeeded,  but  ruled  only  one  year, 
until  1741,  when  he  was  thrown  into  prison,  where  he 
died. 

Elizabeth,  youngest  daughter  of  Peter  the  Great,  ruled 
from  1741  until  1761.  She  died  without  marrying,  but 
adopted  the  grandson  of  Peter  I.,  who  succeeded  her  as 
Peter  III.,  but  he  ruled  only  one  year,  until  1762,  when 
he  was  strangled  by  order  of  his  wife,  Catharine  II. 

Catharine  II.  ruled  from  1762  until  1796. 

Paul  I.,  Catharine's  only  son,  who  was  declared  illegiti- 
mate, ruled  from  1796  until  1801,  when  he  was  strangled 
in  his  palace  by  Count  Parlen. 

Alexander  I.,  son  of  Paul  I.,  ruled  from  1801  until  1825. 
He  died  from  the  effects  of  poisoned  feet,  the  poison 
being  secretly  placed  in  his  boots. 

Nicholas  I.,  second  son  of  Paul  I.,  ruled  from  1825 
until  1855,  when  he  ordered  his  physician  to  prepare 
him  a  dose  of  poison,  which  he  took  on  account  of  his 
defeat  by  England  and  the  Allied  Forces  in  the  Crimean 
War. 

Alexander  II.  ruled  from  1855  until  1881,  when  he  was 
assassinated,  after  many  unsuccessful  attempts,  March 
1st,  Russian  style,  1881. 

Alexander  III.  began  his  rule  upon  the  day  of  his 
father's  (Alexander  II.)  death,  and  is  now  upon  the 
throne,  which  is  like  an  active  volcano  under  his  feet,  or 
a  magazine  of  powder  toward  which  a  lighted  fuse  is 
steadily  burning. 

The  members  of  the  ruling  family  are  as  follows : 

Emperor  Alexander  III.  Alexandra vitch,  born  March 
10th,  1845  ;  he  married  Maria  Sophia  Frederica  Dagmar, 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


59 


daughter  of  Christian  IX.  King  of  Denmark.     The  Em- 
press, who  is  a  sister  to  the  Princess  of  Wales  and  King 

George,  of  Greece,  was 
born  November  26th, 
1847,  and  married  the 
Emperor,  November  9th, 
1866.  She  was  engaged 
to  the  Prince  Imperial 
Nicholas,  elder  brother  of 
t  h  o  present  E  m  p  e  r  o  r, 
who,  however,  was  seized 
with  a  dreadful  malady 
brought  on  by  his  own 
indiscretions,  and  died 
before  reaching  man- 
hood. On  his  death- 
bed he  begged  his  broth- 
er, who  became  heir  in 
succession,  to  marry  the 
Princess ,  which  request 
was  complied  with. 

The  children  of  this 
union  are : 

Nicholas  Al exandro- 
vitch,  the  Prince  Impe- 
rial, who  was  born  May 
18th,  1868. 

George  Alexandro- 
vitch,  Grand  Duke  ;  born 
May  9th,  1871. 

Xenia  Alexandrovna, 

Grand  Duchess;  born 

April  6th,  1875. 

Michael  Alexandroviteh,  Grand  Duke,  born  December 
5th,  1878. 


60  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Olga  Alexaiidrovna,  born  in  May,  1882. 
The  christening  ceremonies  of  this  infant  princess  oc- 
curred at  Peterhoff,  the   Czar's  present  residence,  and 
was  one  of  the   most   gorgeous    affairs   that  ever  took 
place  in  Russia. 

Brothers  and  Sisters  of  the  Emperor — Vladimir  Alex- 
androvitch,  Grand  Duke  ;  horn  April  22,  1847  ;  married 
August  28th,  1874,  to  Princess  Marie,  of  Mecklenburg- 
Schwerin. 

Alexis  Alexandrovitch,  Grand  Duke ;  born  January 
14th,  1850.  Morganatically  married,  but  his  wife  was 
never  acknowledged  by  the  Court,  and  he  was  compelled 
to  sever  his  relations  with  her. 

Marie  Alexaiidrovna,  grand  duchess  ;  born  October  17, 
1853 ;  married  to  the  Duke  of  Edinburg,  second  son  of 
Queen  Victoria,  January  23,  1874. 

Sergius  Alexandrovitch,  Grand  Duke  ;  born  May  llth, 
1857. 

Paul  Alexandrovitch,  Grand  Duke  ;  born  October  3d, 
1860. 

Uncles  and  Aunts — Olga  Nicolaievna,  grand  duchess  ; 
born  September  llth,  1822  ;  married  to  Charles,  now 
King  of  Wurtemburg,  July  13th,  1846. 

Constantine  Nicholaievitch,  Grand  Duke  ;  born  Sep- 
tember 21st,  1827  ;  married  September  llth,  1848,  to  the 
Princess  Alexandra  Josef ovna,  the  daughter  of  Joseph, 
late  duke  of  Saxe  Altenburg. 

There  are  sixteen  other  members  of  the  Royal  Family, 
children  of  the  grand  dukes  and  grand  duchesses,  all  of 
whom  receive  a  large  annual  pension  from  the  Govern- 
ment. 

Few  of  the  grand  dukes  have  held  any  office  requiring 
active  service.  The  grand  duke  Nicholas  wras  field  Mar- 
shal at  the  outbreak  of  the  war  with  Turkey,  but  his 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  61 

father,  Alexander  II.,  had  so  little  confidence  in  him  that 
he  decided  to  assign  the  chief  command  of  the  Russian 

forces  to  one  of  his  old- 
er-Generals. Learning 
this,  Nicholas  presented 
himself  before  his  father, 
and  with  pistol  in  hand 
declared  that  rather  than 
suffer  such  disgrace  he 
would  blow  his  own  brains 
out  before  his  father's 
eyes.  This  threat  induced 
the  Emperor  to  give  the 
chief  command  to  Nicho- 
las, but  before  a  year  had 
elapsed  there  was  such  a 
general  complaint  of  his 
extravagance  and  incom- 
petency  that  the  Czar  was 
forced  to  remove  him  and 
appoint  Gen.  Skobeleff-, 
the  hero  of  Goek-Teppe, 
in  his  place. 

The  grand  duke  Con- 
stantino was,  for  some 
time,  rear  Admiral  of  the 
Eussian  fleet,  but  there 
developed  among  the  ma- 
rines such  strong  revolu- 
tionary sympathies  that 
in  the  spring  of  the  pres- 
ent year  he  was  removed, 
and  the  position  given  to  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis.  The  lat- 
ter at  once  began  a  secret  examination  of  the  men  in  the 


62  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

navy,  which  resulted  in  the  arrest  and  conviction  of  three 
hundred  officers  and  privates  in  the  marine  service,  all  of 
whom  were  sent  into  exile. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THERE  are  three  great  historical  characters  among  the 
rulers  of  Russia,  viz:  Peter  the  Great,  Catharine  II., 
and  Alexander  II.  Of  these  three  the  first  named  is  pre- 
eminent in  history,  while  they  all  have  made  popular  rep- 
utations in  the  order  named. 

Even  in  boyhood,  Peter  the  Great  exhibited  such  traits 
of  character  as  indicated  his  special  capacity  for  the  po- 
sition he  was  hereditarily  called  to  fill.  His  brother, 
upon  whom  the  crown  fell  by  succession,  was  an  idiot, 
and  at  a  very  youthful  age  the  responsibilities  of  Imperial 
State,  under  particularly  perplexing  circumstances,  be- 
came his  inheritance. 

His  early  life  was  characterized  by  those  acts  of  brav- 
ery which  grew  in  importance  as  maturer  years  came 
upon  him.  It  is  told  of  him  that  shortly  after  his  acces- 
sion to  the  throne  a  conspiracy  was  formed  to  consum- 
mate his  assassination.  Those  in  the  plot  had  a  meeting 
place  in  a  peasant's  house,  where  they  secretly  came  to- 
gether and  arranged  their  plans  for  getting  into  his  bed- 
room, and  for  disposing  of  the  body  after  death.  By 
some  means,  which  tradition  does  not  explain,  Peter 
heard  of  the  conspiracy,  and  with  a  spirit  of  reckless 
bravery  undertook  the  task  of  visiting  punishment  upon 
his  enemies.  He  accordingly  posted  himself  in  a  place 
near  the  house  where,  unobserved,  he  might  witness  the 
assembling  of  the  assassins,  When  five  of  the  party 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


63 


64  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

had  collected,  and  while  they  were  taking  an  oath  to 
accomplish  his  murder,  Peter  broke  in  the  door,  and 
with  no  other  weapon  than  his  powerful  arm,  he  rushed 
upon  the  affrighted  men  and  knocked  them  into  a  condi- 
tion of  insensibility,  then  taking  away  their  daggers  he 
kept  them  as  a  memento  of  his  adventure. 

This  great  ruler  was  only  seventeen  years  of  age  when 
he  ascended  the  throne,  but  he  was  both  warrior  and 
statesman  ;  a  sovereign  full  of  ambition  and  the  courage 
to  force  any  extremity.  His  first  desire  was  to  extend 
his  Empire,  and  this  he  undertook  by  engaging  Charles 
XII.,  of  Sweden,  in  a  war  which  lasted,  through  shifting 
fortunes,  for  many  years.  At  the  beginning  of  this  war 
Russia  did  not  extend  further  north  than  the  Neva  River, 
the  territory  lying  beyond  belonging  to  Sweden.  As  a  pre- 
liminary to  the  acquisition  of  Finland,  Peter  the  Great 
wrote  a  letter  to  Charles  XII.,  asking  the  favor  of  build- 
ing a  small  country  residence  on  the  north  bank  of  the 
Neva.  He  had  already  founded  St.  Petersburg,  and  his 
request  for  permission  to  build  a  small  house,  even  on 
Swedish  territory,  but  adjoining  his  own  dominions,  was 
construed  by  Charles  as  nothing  more  than  a  natural  de- 
sire, as  the  spot  selected  was  embowered  by  beautiful 
trees  and  occupied  a  delightful  site,  commanding  an  ex- 
tensive view  up  and  down  the  river.  The  request  was 
therefore  granted,  and  the  wily  Peter  thus  obtained  his 
first  footing  011  Swedish  soil,  which  he  never  relinquished. 
It  was  a  small  house,  in  which  Peter  held  counsel  writh 
his  officers,  and  one  portion  was  fitted  up  for  a  workshop, 
for,  although  Czar,  he  was  a  skilful  mechanic,  whose  chief 
delight  was  the  turning-lathe  and  handling  of  all  kinds 
of  workmen's  tools. 

Before  engaging  in  war,  Peter  equipped  himself  fully 
by  building  a  large  fleet,  providing  abundant  munitions, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  65 

enlarging  and  drilling  his  army,  and  preparing  all  his 
forts  and  other  defenses. 

When  he  had  thus  carefully  arranged  for  a  powerful 
campaign,  war  was  declared,  upon  some  trivial  diplo- 
matic pretext,  and  there  followed  a  twelve  years'  contest 
that  has  rarely  been  equalled  for  fierceness  in  all  history. 

But  the  fortunes  of  war  were  all  against  him  until  his 
exchequer  was  nearly  exhausted,  his  troops  were  beaten 
and  driven  at  every  point,  the  army  became  insubordi- 
nate, and  there  appeared  no  hope  ;  yet  Peter  was  one  of 
those  rare  characters  that  knew  no  such  word  as  fail ;  ev- 
ery blow  he  received  only  served  to  impassion  him  to 
more  determined  acts.  While  in  this  extremity  three 
hundred  of  his  officers  conspired  to  sacrifice  him,  and  had 
arranged  all  their  plans.  At  the  last  moment  he  heard 
of  the  conspiracy,  and  forthwith  covertly  despatched  a 
force  of  trusted  men  to  arrest  them,  not  in  a  body,  but  one 
at  a  time  so  that  no  alarm  might  be  occasioned,  for  he  real- 
ized how  little  sympathy  there  was  among  the  people  for 
his  administration.  When  all  the  arrests  were  made,  and 
the  men  conveyed  to  Moscow,  he  attended  upon  them  in 
person  and  announced  their  fate,  which  was  to  be  decap- 
itation. Peter  was  an  interested  spectator  of  the  execu- 
tions, his  calculating  deference  being  manifested  by  the 
following  incident:  Among  the  number  sentenced  to 
death  was  a  young,  gallant  officer  who  had  been  a  great 
favorite  of  the  Czar's.  This  man,  as  he  laid  his  head 
upon  the  block,  in  order  to  avert  his  gaze  from  the  exe- 
cutioner's sword,  by  a  great  exertion  contrived  to  turn 
his  face  sideways,  which  lifted  one  of  his  shoulders  upon 
the  block.  On  seeing  this  Peter  rushed  up  and  catching 

C?  JL  O 

hold  of  the  hair  of  his  victim,  violently  drew  back  the 
head  into  proper  place,  at  the  same  time  administering 
this  rebuke : 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

"A  brave  and  considerate  fellow  indeed,  who  would 
disgrace  the  headsman  by  causing  him  to  cut  your  shoulder 
rather  than  your  neck." 


SCENE  OF  THE  KXKCUTIOIsS, 


HE  WALLS  OF 


It  was  less  than  a  year  after  the  executions  at  Moscow 
that  another  conspiracy  was  discovered,  headed  by  Pe- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  67 

ter's  favorite  mistress,  a  woman  who  is  represented  as 
exceedingly  beautiful  and  possessing  such  charms  of  per- 
son as  won  from  the  Czar  an  affection  that  subordinated 
his  judgment  and  rendered  him  almost  plastic  in  her 
hands.  She  had  arranged  to  deliver  him  into  the  power 
of  his  enemies,  but  her  purpose  was  disclosed  to  Peter  in 
time  for  him  to  foil  the  conspirators  and  bring  them  to  a 
judgment  similar  to  that  previously  administered  in  Mos- 
cow. The  woman  was  among  those  adjudged  guilty  of 
treason,  and  she  was  brought  to  the  block  arrayed  in  a 
long  white  robe  covered  with  beautiful  lace  ;  around  her 
neck  she  wore  a  circlet  of  diamonds,  a  gift  from  the 
Czar,  and  her  uncommonly  long,  black  hair  was  allowed 
to  hang  disheveled  over  her  shoulders.  She  is  reported 
to  have  presented  an  appearance  which  would  have  turned 
any  heart  but  that  of  the  inflexible  Peter,  and  even  upon 
him  she  produced  such  an  impression  that  he  broke  into 
tears,  and  throwing  himself  upon  her  neck  in  an  agony 
of  grief  exclaimed  : 

"  Oh,  beautiful  being,  I  would  gladly  exchange  places 
with  you  this  sad  hour,  but  pardon  you  I  cannot.  It  is 
the  Czar's  duty  to  see  no  one  convicted  without  just 
cause,  so  is  it  the  Czar's  duty  to  see  the  law  rigidly  en- 
forced." 

Then  after  kissing  her  many  times,  he  ordered  her 
head  laid  upon  the  block,  and  a  moment  after  signaled 
the  headsman  to  do  his  bloody  work. 

It  is  true  that  during  the  forty-three  years  of  his 
administration  Peter  the  Great  never  pardoned  a  single 
convicted  offender,  and  it  was  his  pride  to  declare  the 
fact. 

Though  desperately  beaten  on  nearly  every  battle-field 
for  nine  years,  and  until  a  further  continuance  of  the 
struggle  appeared  hopeless,  still  the  Great  Peter  sue- 


68  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ceeded  in  inspiring  his  army  with  his  own  dauntless  spirit. 
At  length  fortune  changed  in  his  favor,  and  soon  hope 
blazed  up  all  over  the  once  despairing  Empire.  The 
battle  of  Pultova,  which  was  fought  under  Imperial! ead- 
ership  by  the  flower  of  both  armies,  resulted  in  Peter's 
favor,  and  was  so  complete  an  overthrow  of  Swedish 
influence  and  power  that  it  was  the  last  blow  struck  on 
either  side.  Charles  XII.  was  himself  desperately 
wounded,  his  army  almost  annihilated,  and  he  was  ready 
to  sue  for  peace  at  any  price.  A  treaty  followed  soon 
after,  which  ceded  to  Russia  nearly  all  that  territory  now 
known  as  Finland,  but  the  Government  of  Finland  has 
ever  remained  isolated  from  Russia,  for  the  reason  that 
it  has  a  limited  constitution  and  is  a  Dukedom. 

At  the  conclusion  of  peace  Peter  renewed  the  building 
of  St.  Petersburg,  intending  that  it  should  be  the  capital 
of  the  Empire.  He  soon  removed  from  his  little  palace — 
which  was  called  "  palace  ' '  because  it  was  the  Royal  resi- 
dence— to  a  spot  eighteen  miles  west  of  the  city,  where 
he  built  another  palace,  and  called  the  place  Peterhoff . 
There  were  two  houses  constructed  for  his  residence, 
both  of  which  are  very  small,  one  of  them  being  beauti- 
fullv  situated  on  a  bank  of  the  Finland  Gulf,  and  the 
other  in  a  delightful  wood,  before  which  was  made  a  large 
fish  pond.  He  bestowed  such  attention  on  the  grounds 
at  Peterhoff  that  they  are  regarded  as  the  most  pictur- 
esque in  all  Europe. 

He  concentrated  so  much  of  his  ambition  on  St.  Peters- 
burg, however,  that  notwithstanding  the  fact  of  its  estab- 
lishment on  an  extensive  morass,  he  expended  the  means 
which  have,  made  it  next  to  Paris  in  architectural  beauty, 
with  broad  streets  and  numerous  parks,  graceful  monu- 
ments, and  the  finest  Imperial  palace  in  the  world.  He 
fostered  the  arts  and  sciences,  gave  encouragement  to 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  69 

every  commendable  enterprise,  and  made  Russia  a  power 
equal  to  any  in  Europe. 

Generous  in  sustaining  every  scheme  which  he  con- 
sidered would  advance  the  national  interest,  and  genial 
in  his  intercourse  with  those  he  met  in  diplomatic  or 
court  relations,  yet  his  stern  determination  and  inflexi- 
ble heart  made  him  often  appear  like  a  man  destitute  of 
human  feeling  and  wholly  without  mercy.  He  had  but 
one  son,  who  possessed  many  of  the  traits  characteristic 
of  the  sire  ;  this  youth  had  an  abnormally  long  head  and 
a  strange  visage  which  foreboded  dark  purposes.  When 
only  fifteen  years  of  age  he  became  a  disturbing  factor 
in  the  Empire  by  attempting  to  incite  a  rebellion  against 
his  father  ;  so  persistent  was  the  youth  in  fomenting  dis- 
cord that  his  father  ordered  him  thrown  into  prison,  but 
he  was  not  so  strictly  confined  as  to  prevent  intercourse 
with  many  officials  whom  he  tried  to  influence  against 
the  Czar.  So  incensed  at  length  did  Peter  become  that, 
alone,  he  repaired  to  the  prison,  and  with  his  own  hand 
struck  a  dagger  into  the  heart  of  his  recreant  son. 

The  second  greatest  character  in  Russian  history,  as 
before  mentioned,  was  Catharine  II.,  who  was  a  German 
princess  brought  to  Russia  under  the  following  circum- 
stances : 

Elizabeth,  youngest  daughter  of  Peter  the  Great,  was 
without  issue,  though  upon  the  throne  from  1741  until 
1762.  In  order  to  retain  the  throne  in  the  family,  she 
adopted  a  grandson  of  Peter  I.,  whom  she  raised  at 
Court  under  Imperial  tutelage.  When  the  young  Peter 
approached  his  adolescence  Elizabeth  grew  anxious  for 
him  to  fix  his  intentions  upon  some  princess  who  might, 
as  Empress,  reflect  credit  upon  himself  and  the  nation, 
but  Peter  was  so  diffident  that  he  had  to  be  coerced  into  a 

courtship.     To  this  end  the  Empress  sent  for  four  Ger- 
5 


< :.U  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

man  princesses  all  about  the  age  of  the  youthful  Peter, 
to  visit  her  d  uring  the  approaching  winter.  The  girls  were 
brought  to  Russia  in  a  post-chaise,  and  upon  their  arrival 
they  were  met  by  the  Empress,  who  observed  a  remarka- 
ble difference  between  Catharine,  one  of  the  quartette, 
and  the  other  three  princesses.  This  difference  consisted 
in  a  bold,  frank,  careless  air  manifested  by  Catharine 
as  she  entered  the  Royal  presence,  whilst  her  three  com- 
panions exhibited  such  modesty  and  awkward  diffidence 
that  Elizabeth  declared,  within  half  an  hour  after  receiv- 
ing them,  that  Catharine  should  become  wife  to  her 
adopted  Peter. 

The  two  were  brought  together  and  their  respective  suits 
vicariously  pleaded  with  such  persistency  that  although 
Catharine  could  scarcely  endure  the  Prince  Imperial,  yet 
she  was  induced  to  marry  him.  This  union  was  a  most 
unfortunate  one,  as  will  appear  hereafter. 

Upon  the  death  of  Elizabeth,  Peter  I.  became  Czar 
under  the  title  of  Peter  III.  He  was  a  weak  ruler  and 
directly  opposite  in  desposition  to  Catharine,  whose  am- 
bition was  as  all-absorbing  as  that  displayed  by  Peter 
the  Great.  After  one  year  of  contention  Catharine  took 
up  her  residence  at  Peterhoff,  while  Peter  III.  remained 
at  the  Winter  Palace  with  his  mistress,  the  Countess  Stro- 
ganhoff.  This  woman  gained  such  an  influence  over  him 
that  he  decided  to  marry  her.  To  accomplish  his  pur- 
pose he  had  first  to  get  rid  of  Catharine,  which  he  at- 
tempted to  do  by  preparing  charges  against  her  of  trea- 
son and  inconstancy.  Following  these  he  issued  an 
order  for  her  arrest,  which  was  to  take  place  the  morn- 
ing following. 

It  was  Catharine's  good  fortune  to  have  a  friend  at 
Peter's  Court  who,  learning  of  the  secret  arrangement  to 
bring  her  to  trial,  which  would  have  resulted  in  her  ban- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  71 

ishment,  drove  quickly  to  Peterhoff  and  acquainted  her 
fully  of  the  conspiracy.  Catharine  was  not  a  woman  to 
quail  or  grow  sick  at  heart  over  this  discouraging  news  ; 
but  with  a  quick  perception  and  the  determination  to 
dare  and  do,  she  called  her  waiting  maid,  whom  she  im- 
plicitly trusted,  and  ordering  her  sleigh  to  be  quickly 
brought,  she  drove  with  all  possible  dispatch  to  St.  Pe- 
tersburg and  drew  up  her  foaming  horses  before  the  bar- 
racks of  the  Imperial  Horse  Guards.  It  was  one  o'clock 
in  the  morning  when  she  awakened  the  chief  officer,  and 
with  speech  that  characterized  her  as  a  puissant  queen, 
she  told  him  of  the  conspiracy  and  demanded  his  assist- 
ance. The  .officer  was  thus  placed  in  a  truly  dangerous 
position,  for  his  acts  must  now  be  treason  either  to  the 
Emperor  or  Empress,  for  obedience  to  one  would  be 
treason  to  the  other.  In  the  moments  of  his  indecision 
and  while  Catharine  was  haranguing  the  officers  and  men 
with  words  of  burning  eloquence,  a  young  lieutenant 
named  Potemkin  drew  his  sword  from  its  scabbard  and 
holding  it  aloft  declared  his  allegiance  to  the  Empress 
and  offered  his  services  and  life  in  her  behalf.  This 
spirit  became  at  once  contagious,  and  in  an  hour's  time 
the  Horse  Guards,  to  a  man,  swore  fidelity  to  her  and 
promised  to  execute  all  her  orders. 

Catharine  seized  the  advantage  which  was  now  clearly 
hers,  and  while  Peter  was  reposing  in  the  arms  of  his 
mistress,  unconscious  of  betrayal,  the  strategic  Queen 
burst  in  upon  the  Winter  Palace  with  her  faithful  force, 
intending  to  summarily  arrest  and  execute  her  faithless 
husband.  But  the  Emperor  was  aroused  in  time  to  effect 
his  escape  down  a  private  stairway  and,  half  clothed,  his 
identity  was  so  concealed  that  he  fled  undetected  to  Cron- 
stadt-.  Here  he  was  comparatively  safe,  as  there  was  no 
force  in  all  Russia  that  could  have  successfully  assaulted 
this  the  strongest  fortress  in  the  Empire. 


72  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Catharine  assumed  control  as  Empress  without  incur- 
ring any  opposition,  and  conducted  the  Government  for 
a  period  of  three  months  without  holding  any  communi- 
cation with  the  dethroned  Emperor.  She  was  not  satis- 
fied, however,  with  the  apparent  acquiescence  in  her  rule, 
for  there  was  a  feeling  of  insecurity,  occasioned  by  a 
dread  of  some  conspiracy  which  might  arise  against  her 
and  restore  the  Emperor,  so  she  concocted  a  diabolical 
plan  for  his  assassination,  the  details  of  which  show  her 
to  have  been  a  cunning,  but  heartless  woman. 

Having  thoroughly  conceived  her  purposes,  Catharine 
wrote  a  lengthy  letter,  filled  with  the  most  affectionate 
declarations,  to  the  despondent  Emperor,  in  which  she 
reminded  him  of  their  early  courtship,  the  love  that  he 
bore  for  her  before  the  poisonous  influences  of  imperial- 
ism and  sovereignty  had  alienated  him  ;  she  avowed  her 
inexpressible  love  for  him  still,  which,  she  claimed,  was 
only  realized  when  cruel  circumstances  had  so  strangely 
separated  him  from  her  ;  she  also  absolved  him  from  cen- 
sure for  the  part  he  had  taken,  throwing  all  the  guilt 
upon  those  who  had,  through  jealousy,  influenced  him  to 
do  that  which  she  declared  was  foreign  to  his  naturally 
pious  and  loving  nature.  She  also  pointed  out  the  evil 
suffered  by  the  nation  by  reason  of  a  disgraceful  act 
which  had  brought  nothing  but  sorrow  to  them  both. 
These  specious  pretenses  were  concluded  by  a  cordial  in- 
vitation which  she  extended  him,  announcing  that,  being 
so  anxious  for  a  reconciliation  she  would  grieve  her- 
self to  death  if  it  were  denied,  she  had  arranged  to  give 
him  a  royal  dinner  at  Peterhoff ,  at  which  would  be  pres- 
ent a  special  company  of  his  friends  to  welcome  him 
back  again  to  his  loving  wife  and  tjie  throne  of  Russia. 

This  letter,  so  skilful  in  its  construction,  completely 
captivated  Peter,  for  being  of  a  despondent  nature  he 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  73 

only  needed  the  effervescent  spirit  of  such  a  communi- 
cation to  dissipate  the  gloom  which  had  gathered  so 
densely  about  him.  His  friends,  however,  thought  they 
detected  the  signs  of  a  conspiracy  in  the  missive,  be- 
cause not  a  single  sentence  accorded  with  the  nature  of 
Catharine,  whom  they  knew  to  be  ambitious,  despotic 
and  unscrupulous,  They  therefore  strongly  advised  him 
not  to  accept  the  invitation,  but  he  could  discover  noth- 
ing in  the  communication  beyond  that  which  promised 
him  a  restoration  to  power. 

He  accordingly  ordered  his  yacht  and  sailed  across  to 
Peterhoff,  his  heart  exulting  with  proud  expectations  and 
without  the  slightest  suspicion  of  the  dreadful  death  that 
he  was  hastening  to.  Upon  reaching  Peterhoff  he  was 
astonished  to  find  no  preparations  for  his  reception,  but 
even  this  did  not  excite  in  him  the  least  apprehension. 
Arriving  at  the  Palace  he  was  told  that  the  Empress  had 
arranged  to  meet  him  at  the  Ropscha  Palace. 

Still  unsuspicious,  he  entered  a  carriage  which  was 
placed  at  his  disposal,  and  drove  to  Ropcha,  which  is 
about  twenty  miles  from  Peterhoff,  where  he  first  be- 
came alarmed  by  failing  to  observe  anything  that  indi- 
cated an  expected  visit  from  him.  But  he  was  now  too 
far  advanced  into  Catharine's  territory  to  turn  back,  for 
flight  could  not  have  saved  him.  Entering  the  Palace  he 
was  met  by  an  officer,  who,  with  profound  obeisance  ad- 
dressed him  as  "Your  Majesty,"  and  conducted  him 
into  the  reception  room  where  a  score  more  of  officers 
greeted  him  in  a  manner  becoming  his  rank.  Being  seated 
he  enquired  for  Catharine,  and  was  told  that  Her  Majesty 
was  in  the  toilette  room  with  her  maids,  but  would  appear 
presently . 

In  a  short  time  dinner  was  announced,  and  he  was  in- 
vited to  accompany  the  officers  to  the  dining  hall,  where 
they  assured  him  Catharine  would  appear  at  once. 


74 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AN1> 


Everything  was  of  such  strained  and  uncertain  charac- 
ter that  Peter's  alarm  momentarily  increased  until  when 
he  sat  down  at  the  table  his  face  blanched  with  fright. 
Calling  again  for  Catharine  and  receiving  an  unsatisfacto- 
ry answer,  Peter  arose  from  the  table  and  exclaimed  : 


ROPSCHA  PALACE,   WHERE  PETER  III.  WAS  STRANGLED. 

"  I  perceive,  gentlemen,  that  I  have  been  grossly  de- 
ceived, and  that  instead  of  inviting  me  to  a  reconcilia- 
tion with  the  Empress,  this  is  a  scheme  to  assassinate 


me. 


As  these  words  were  uttered  Count  Oraloff  approached 
him  suddenly  from  behind,  and  throwing  a  napkin  around 
his  neck  exclaimed : 

"Yes,  and  it  shall  be  as  painless  as  we  can  make  it." 


KX1LK  L.IFK  IX  SII5ERIA.  75 

The  Emperor  had  time  then  only  to  cry,  "Shame! 
shame  ! ' '  when  the  napkin  was  drawn  so  tightly  that  he 
soon  died  of  strangulation 

Catharine  had  but  one  child,  a  son,  who  was  declared 
illegitimate,  and  when  he  ascended  the  throne  as  Paul  I.  a 
revolution  was  averted  only  by  the  most  obsequious 
promises  to  pacify  the  people.  He  ruled  for  five  years,  but 
with  such  dissatisfaction  that  a  conspiracy  was  organized 
against  him  in  his  own  palace  ;  the  conspirators  forced 
themselves  into  his  private  study,  and  presenting  a  letter 
of  abdication  demanded  that  he  should  sign  it.  This  he 
refused,  whereupon  Count  Parlen,  at'sisted  by  six  others, 
drew  a  napkin  about  his  neck  and  strangled  him  to  death 
in  the  same  way  in  which  his  father  was  executed 

The  reign  of  Catharine  II.  was  marked  by  the  great 
progress  Russia  made,  notwithstanding  the  wars  she  pre- 
cipited  which  drew  so  heavily  upon  her  treasury.  She 
did  more  for  St.  Petersburg  even  than  Peter  the  Great, 
some  of  her  principal  works  being  the  construction  of 
three  canals  which  run  through  the  city  and  connect  the 
Volga  with  the  Neva  river,  by  which  boats  may  run 
through  from  the  Caspian  to  the  Baltic  sea.  Her  politic 
measures  were  no  less  important,  for  she  confirmed  the 
abolition  of  the  secret  state  inquisition  ;  she  also  educated 
seven  thousand  children,  and  among  many  other  acts  of 
public  charity  she  established  a  foundling  asylum  at  St. 
Petersburg,  and  also  one  at  Moscow.  These  institutions 
arc  the  largest  of  the  kind  in  the  world.  The  one  at 
Moscow  receives  an  average  of  one  hundred  foundlings 
every  day,  while  the  one  in  St.  Petersburg  receives  half 
that  number. 

Her  entire  reign  was  distinguished  for  the  successful 
wars  she  waged  against  Turkey,  at  one  time  pushing  her 
arms  so  far  that  Constantinople  would  have  been  com- 


7b  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

pelled  to  capitulate,  but  for  the  intervention  of  other 
powers.  Her  efforts  to  annex  Poland  precipitated  a 
great  civil  war  which  resulted,  through  the  intrigues  of 
Russia,  Austria  and  Prussia,  in  an  assault  on  Warsaw  and 
the  most  dreadful  massacre  that  the  pen  of  history  has 
perhaps  ever  recorded. 

In  1784  Catharine  gained  complete  possession  of  the 
Crimea  and  the  adjacent  islands  ;  she  then  established 
the  great  fort  of  Sevastopol,  which  became  such  a  prom- 
inent point  of  attack  in  the  Crimean  war  of  1853-54-55. 

Her  private  life  was  marked  by  the  most  demoralizing 
excesses,  which  she  took  no  pains  to  conceal.  She  be- 
stowed every  honor  within  her  gift  upon  Potemkin, 
the  lieutenant  of  the  Horse  Guards  who  espoused  her 
cause  against  Peter  III.,  and  her  favors  were  not  limited 
to  offices  of  preferment.  She  had  seven  favorites  who 
were  her  daily  companions  and  counselors,  and  these  are 
remembered  in  St.  Petersburg  by  a  large  bronze  statue  of 
Catharine,  around  the  pedestal  of  which  are  grouped 
smaller  statues  of  the  favored  Septemviri. 

Her  ambition  was  abnormal,  being  irrepressible  even 
in  the  last  moments  of  her  life.  When  conscious  that 
death  was  at  hand,  with  great  effort  she  rose  up  so  fur  as 
her  strength  would  allow,  but  fell  back  with  these  last 
words : 

"  Bring  me  the  crown,  that  I  may  feel  it  on  my  head 
once  more  before  I  die.  The  crown!  the  crown!" 
and  whispering  these  words  she  expired. 


I 
EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  77 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  third  and  last  distinguished  historical  character  of 
Russia  is  Alexander  II.,  whose  tragic  death,  March  13, 
1881,  startled  the  world.  While  I  have  selected  as  strik- 
ingly great,  in  the  Romanoff  dynasty,  only  three  rulers, 
I  would  have  it  understood  that  my  estimation  of  these 
sovereigns  is  based  entirely  upon  the  civil  policy  which 
they  pursued,  and  their  influence  in  promoting  the  com- 
merce and  arts  of  Russia.  There  were  greater  warriors 
on  the  throne  of  Russia  than  Peter  the  Great,  among 
whom  I  may  mention  Tamerlane,  Ivan  IV.,  surnamed 
the  Terrible,  and  Vladimir  the  Great,  but  I  have  not  at- 
tempted to  outline  a  general  history  of  Russia,  as  that 
task  has  been  accomplished  already  by  several  writers 
whose  works  have  become  standard  in  the  various  civil- 
ized countries.  My  purpose  in  introducing  Peter  the 
Great,  Catharine  II.  and  Alexander  II.  as  pre-eminently 
prominent  sovereigns  was  to  utilize  their  administrations 
as  a  specially  appropriate  prelude  to  the  subject  of  Rus- 
sia's internal  revolution.  Their  several  policies  and  ten- 
dencies serve  to  illustrate  the  mercurial  and  violent  na- 
ture of  the  Russian  people,  as  well  as  the  burdens 
they  have  had  to  endure,  and  with  the  foregoing  epitome 
of  the  two  greatest  administrations  in  Russia  an  intelli- 
gent comprehension  of  that  which  is  to  follow  may  be 
had. 

When  Alexander  came  to  the  throne  there  was  every- 
thing to  discourage  him.  His  father  had  died  under  the 
most  lamentable  circumstances  ;  the  Crimean  war  fail- 
ure had  caused  mutterings  and  a  restlessness  among  the 
people  which  seemed  to  threaten  disruption,  if  not  revo- 
lution ;  there  was  an  empty  treasury  gaping  at  a  debt  of 


78 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


ALEXANDER   II.,  LATE  EMPEROR  OF  RUSSIA. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  '    79 

frightful  proportions ;  and  as  the  war  with  the  Allied 
Powers  had  not  yet  terminated,  he  reached  the  throne  in 
time  to  be  held  responsible  for  the  downfall  of  Sevasto- 
pol. 

Nicholas  I.  was  a  despot  whose  iron  hand  had  crushed 
out  every  semblance  of  liberty,  and  the  people  were 
naturally  distrustful  of  the  son  of  such  a  man,  but  the  first 
acts  of  Alexander  II.  was  to  reduce  the  public  burdens 
and  inaugurate  social  reforms  of  great  consequence  to 
the  people.  At  the  conclusion  of  peace  he  reduced  his 
army  to  the  lowest  possible  limits  compatible  with  the 
safety  of  the  Empire  ;  he  next  established  trial  by  jury, 
devised  a  code  of  laws  for  the  restraint  of  the  royal  fam- 
ily, and  so  mitigated  the  censorship  of  the  press  that 
immediately  literature  was  stimulated  and  with  it  fol- 
lowed a  rapid  progress  in  all  the  arts  and  sciences.  But 
in  making  these  reforms  he  met  with  a  stubborn  opposi- 
tion from  the  noblesse,  so  that  they  finally  became  as 
laws  observed  only  in  the  breach.  An  author  writing  at 
the  time  on  the  profession  and  practices  of  the  adminis- 
tration observes : 

"In  the  administration  of  justice  we  find  on  the  one 
hand  publicity  and  ample  show  of  discussion  during  the 
proceedings,  and  in  the  jury-box  ;  on  the  other  a  practice 
which  removes  inconvenient  persons  from  the  cognizance 
of  a  tribunal,  and  sends  them  '  administratively '  to  Si- 
beria. On  the  one  side  abolition  of  corporal  chastise- 
ment as  a  criminal  and  disciplinary  punishment ;  on  the 
other,  incessant  floggings  in  secret.  On  the  one  side  a 
recognition  of  the  principles  of  self-government  in  the 
provinces  and  towns ;  on  the  other,  the  impossibility  of 
turning  this  to  any  practical  use  through  fear  of  Gov- 
ernors, Ministers,  Councillors,  or  Chiefs  of  Gendarmes. 
On  the  one  side  a  strict  demarcation  of  power  among 


80  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

„  the  various  authorities,  and  a  distinct  separation  of  judi- 
cial from  administrative  functions  ;  on  the  other,  an  un- 
bounded exercise  of  arbitrary  power  by  higher  police 
officials,  who  in  their  turn  are  ruled  over  by  the  *  Third 
Section,'  whose  supreme  command  overrides  everything 
else." 

Although  the  reforms  sought  to  be  established  by 
Alexander  were  suggested  by  an  honest  intention  to 
remedy  many  crying  evils,  instead  of  eradicating,  or 
even  ameliorating  any  of  the  vicious  practices  so  long 
complained  of,  seem  to  have  served  no  other  purpose 
than  that  of  creating  an  inveterate  hostility  to  him  person- 
ally, which  culminated,  after  five  unsuccessful  attempts, 
in  his  assassination. 

We  are  now  brought  to  a  period  in  Russian  history 
where  Nihilism  had  its  beginning,  for,  strange  enough, 
this  bloody  creature  of  a  disordered  if  not  frenzied  con- 
ception had  its  birth  in  the  very  cradle  of  emancipation. 

Communism  was  a  disquieting,  if  not  dangerous  factor 
in  Russia  as  early  as  1825,  when  a  band  of  conspirators 
attempted  to  substitute  constitutional  for  despotic  Gov- 
ernment through  the  'assassination  of  Alexander  I.,  but 
there  was  a  great  dissimilarity  in  the  two  organizations, 
found  in  the  fact  that  Communism  of  that  time  had  a 
defined  policy  and  a  formulated  idea  of  the  Government 
it  proposed  to  establish,  while  Nihilism  is  exactly  what 
the  word  implies,  "  nothing  ;"  a  determination  to  wreak 
vengeance  without  considering  either  the  means  or 

o  O 

result. 

Russian  Communism  in  1825  had  its  origin  in  a  grow- 
ing discontent  with  existing  institutions  and  a  desire  to 
see  them  replaced  by  laws  more  in  accordance  with  mod- 
ern ideas.  This  disposition,  which  was  first  manifested 
among  the  nobles,  grew  out  of  that  vast  wave  of  thought 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  81 

to  which  the  French  Revolution  gave  rise,  and,  to  some 
extent,  to  the  unsettling  forces  set  free  during  the  great 
struggle  with  Napoleon  I. 

The  close  of  the  life  of  Alexander  I.  was  embittered 
by  the  reflection  of  how  much  he  had  done  for  his  people 
and  the  ingratitude  they  had  returned.  From  time  to 
time  he  received  mysterious  messages  containing  warn- 
ings that  his  life  and  throne  were  in  danger.  His  mind 
became  so  gloomy  under  these  threatened  calamities  that 
he  died  of  a  broken  heart  at  Togaurog. 

An  interregnum  ensued,  during  which,  while  Nicholas 
was  refusing  to  exclude  his  elder  brother  from  the  throne 
and  while  Constantine  was  undetermined  whether  or  not 
to  swear  allegiance  to  his  younger  brother,  the  Commun- 
ists gained  strength  and  their  plans  coherency.  The  re- 
sult was  a  military  insurrection  in  December,  1825, 
which  terminated  in  a  dreadful  carnage.  The  attack  was 
made  on  the  Winter  Palace  by  about  five  thousand  men, 
who  gathered  in  the  Alexander  Square  in  broken  ranks, 
and  with  such  weapons  as  they  could  collect.  The  mob 
was  met  by  a  battery  of  heavy  artillery,  planted  in  front 
of  the  Ministry  of  Justice,  one  hundred  yards  from  the 
Palace,  which,  with  grape-shot,  opened  fire  on  the  crowd 
until  nearly  three  thousand  of  the  revolutionists  were 
mangled  in  instant  death  or  left  dying  in  a  sea  of  blood. 

This  dreadful  slaughter  suppressed  Communism  until, 
upon  the  accession  of  Alexander  II.,  Alexander  Herzen 
organized  a  revolutionary  committee  and  established  a 
printing  office  in  London ,  where  Nihilistic  literature  was 
printed  and  used  to  inflame  the  passions  of  adventurers 
and  those  who  were  conscious  of  Russian  oppression. 
This  committee  had  its  branches  in  Paris,  Berlin  and 
Geneva,  but  was  making  little  progress  when  the  Em- 
peror declared,  by  act  of  emancipation  February  19, 


82  El  \s«$l  AX  MHILISM  AND 

1861,  the  freedom  of  the  Serfs.  This  was  a  blow  at  the 
Russain  nobility  which  proved  disastrous  to  their  inter- 
ests and  led  to  evils  far  beyond  those  anticipated  by  the 
Emperor. 

The  history  of  Serfdom  may  be  briefly  told,  and  as  it 
is  essential  to  a  correct  understanding  of  the  emancipa- 
tion proclamation  and  its  consequences,  is  herewith 
given  : 

The  original  settlers  of  Russia  being1  from  the  east  and 

~  o 

south,  the  nomadic  disposition  which  characterized  them 
continued  to  be  a  feature  of  the  Government,  until  meas- 
ures were  taken,  at  first  of  a  mild,  persuasive  nature,  to 
induce  a  permanent  settlement  of  the  people,  in  order 
that  agriculture  might  be  promoted.  Incursions  from 
neighboring  tribes  for  purposes  of  forage  and  reprisal, 
followed  by  hordes  who  retaliated  upon  the  invaders,  be- 
came so  general  as  to  prevent  any  attempt  to  engage  in 
productive  industry,  until  in  1592  Boris  Godunoff,  of 
the  Rurik  dynasty,  became  convinced  that  there  could 
be  no  progress  or  cohesion  in  his  Empire  unless  the  per- 
nicious custom  was  abolished.  He  accordingly  promul- 
gated a  peremptory  decree,  forbidding  peasants  from 
changing' their  residence  or  appearing  off  their  communal 
estates  without  a  permit  from  the  Governor  of  their  re- 
spective districts.  All  efforts  to  enforce  this  decree 
proved  futile,  because  no  adequate  punishment  was  pro- 
vided for  its  infraction. 

Determined  in  his  purpose,  however,  Godunoff  had 
enacted  and  put  into  execution  another  law  which  gave 
the  right  to  any  nobleman — which  was  a  wealthy  class 
of  landed  estate  owners,  whose  occupation  was  chiefly 
stock  raising — to  hold  in  bondage  all  the  peasants  em- 
ployed by  him,  and  also  the  further  right  of  forcibly 
taking  and  owning  as  slaves  any  peasant  whom  he  might 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA, 


83 


84  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

find  off  the  communal  estate  on  which  such  peasant  was 
recorded  as  a  resident.  This  latter  law  gave  the  noble- 
men absolute  ownership  of  the  serfs  thus  forced  into 
bondage,  with  the  right  to  dispose  of  them  the  same  as 
other  chattels.  The  law  remained  unchanged  until  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  Nicholas  I.,  when  that  sovereign  issued 
another  decree  taking  away  from  the  noblemen  the  right 
of  selling  their  serfs  except  as  they  might  be  disposed  of 
with  the  estates  of  their  masters. 

So  extensive  did  this  system  of  slavery  become  that  in 
the  year  1858  it  is  computed  there  were  47,100,000  per- 
sons in  servitude,  more  than  one-half  the  entire  popula- 
tion of  European  Russia.  Of  this  number  M.  Rambaud 
estimates  that  20,000,000  were  Crown  peasants,  4,700,- 
000  were  peasants  attached  to  estates,  which  were  the 
Appenages  of  the  Crown,  laboring  in  mines  and  factories 
belonging  to  the  Crown  ;  21,000,000  belonged  to  private 
individuals  and  1,400,000,  were  domestic  servants. 

The  serfs  of  the  Crown  and  of  the  Appenages  might 
be  considered  as  free  men,  subject  to  the  payment  of  a 
rent,  and  bound  only  to  perform  certain  defined  obliga- 
tions to  the  State,  while  they  were  permitted  to  enjoy  a 
restricted  local  self-government.  To  emancipate  these 
involved  only  an  Imperial  edict  of  manumission,  which 
was  done  gradually  by  a  series  of  ukases,  the  first  of 
which  bore  date  July,  1858. 

The  emancipation  of  those  serfs  belonging  to  private 
owners,  however,  was  a  task  not  so  easily  performed,  for, 
as  Rambaud  observes, "  the  liberation  of  these  22,400,000 
human  beings  was  to  constitute  the  most  prodigious  social 
revolution  that  has  been  accomplished  since  the  French 
Revolution."  Particularly  was  the  task  a  difficult  one, 
sin^e  the  scheme  provided  for  the  liberation  of  the 
serfs  under  such  conditions  as  left  them  in  possession  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


8G  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

the  estates  they  hud  cultivated,  but  imposed  obligations 
upon  them  which  may  be  summed  up  in  the  following : 

1st.  The  peasants  were  to  be  invested  with  the  privi- 
leges of  free  cultivators. 

2d.  They  were  to  have,  under  conditions  expressed  in 
the  decree,  the  full  enjoyment  of  their  enclosure,  and 
also  of  a  portion  of  productive  land  sufficient  to  enable 
them  by  industry  to  discharge  certain  obligations  to  the 
State.  This  enjoyment  might  become  absolute  posses- 
sion of  the  enclosure  by  purchase. 

3d.  The  noblemen  were  to  surrender  to  the  peasants 
all  the  land  actually  occupied  by  them,  a  maximum  and 
minimum  being  fixed  for  each  commune — the  serfs  lived 
in  communes  in  a  manner  which  will  be  explained  here- 
after. The  average  allowance  was  nine  acres  of  arable 
land  to  each  male  serf ;  the  allotment  differed  greatly, 
however,  in  different  districts,  according  to  the  charac- 
ter of  the  soil ;  in  some  rich  localities  as  little  as  three 
acres  were  granted  each  serf,  while  in  the  most  unpro- 
ductive portions  as  much  as  twenty-five  acres  was  the 
portion. 

4.  The  Government  obligated  itself  to  organize  a  sys- 
tem of  laws  through  which  the  serfs  were  to  be  enabled 
to  discharge  their  obligations  to  the  State. 

5.  The  domestic  servants  were  to  be  granted  an  uncon- 
ditional freedom  after  serving  their  masters  forthe  period 
of  two  years. 

6.  The  owners  of  the  land  and  serfs  were  to  receive 
compensation,  for  the  property  thus  yielded,  by  a  money 
payment,  which  was  based  upon  the  rents  they  had  re- 
ceived and  the  value  of  their  serf  labor,  which  was  to  be 
calculated  at  a  yearly  rental  of  six  per  cent ;  "so  that, 
for  every  six  roubles  which  the  laborer  had  earned  an- 
nually,   he    had    to   pay    one    hundred    roubles    to    his 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  87 

master  as  his  capital  value  to  become  a  free  holder."  Of 
this  sum,  twenty  per  cent,  was  advanced  by  the  Govern- 
ment to  the  noblemen  (owners)  which  was  to  be  refund- 
ed by  the  freed  peasants  in  installments  extending  over 
fifty-nine  years.  To  secure  this  repayment,  the  Govern- 
ment imposed  a  tax  on  the  commune,  making  the  house- 
holders of  each  Mir,  or  village,  individually  responsible 
for  the  entire  sum,  charging  on  each  commune  a  portion 
of  the  redemption  dues  and  other  imperial  taxes  propor- 
tionate to  the  number  of  males  in  the  census  list,  which 
is  revised  and  republished  annually.* 

This  Imperial  ukase  of  emancipation  went  into  effect 
February  19,  1861,  and  immediately  produced  a  violent 
feeling,  which  for  a  time  threatened  civil  war.  We,  in 
America,  who  know  the  effect  of  President  Lincoln's 
manumission  proclamation,  can  readily  understand  the 
rebellious  spirit  which  must  have  animated  the  Russian 
noblemen,  for  though  there  was  a  compensation  fixed  by 
the  Government,  by  which  the  serf  owners  were  to  re- 
ceive a  money  consideration,  yet  the  scheme  of  payment 
Avas  of  such  a  character  as  to  be  practically  valueless  to 
the  noblemen.  It  was  a  virtual  confiscation  of  both  their 
lands  and  serfs. 

Under  the  system  of  serfdom  there  developed  a  no- 
blesse class  of  aristocracy,  who  practiced  the  most  extrav- 
agant indulgences,  maintaining  fine  country  seats  in 
France,  Switzerland  and  Bavaria,  dressing  in  a  garb  of 
richest  splendor  when  in  Russia,  keeping  scores  of  mis- 
tresses, and  breathing  nothing  but  the  atmosphere  of 
profligacy. 

They  not  only  derived  an  income  from  their  pastoral 
estates,  but  encouraged  their  more  ambitious  slaves  to 


*  Russia,  Past  and  Present,  by  H.  M.  Chester. 


88 


KITSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXD 


engage  in  business  in  the  cities.     Thousands  of  serfs  of 
quick  intelligence  were  glad  to  pay  their  masters  the  sum 


A  RUSSIAN  NOBLE  LADY  OF  THE  XVITH  CENTURY. 

of  one  thousand  roubles  annually  for  what  they  could 
earn  in  commercial  undertakings.     But  there  are  hun- 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  89 

dreds  of  instances  in  which  greedy  masters  compelled 
their  serfs,  who  had  prospered  in  business,  to  pay  them 
ten  times  the  amount  they  had  thus  agreed  to  accept. 
There  was  a  law  which  made  noblemen  amenable  to  con- 
tracts thus  entered  into  with  their  serfs,  but  it  was  ren- 
dered inoperative  by  the  right  of  the  owner,  at  the  ex- 
piration of  such  time  as  he  had  agreed  to  grant  freedom 
to  his  slave,  to  compel  his  serf  to  abandon  business  and 
return  to  the  commune. 

Suddenly  stripped  of  their  wealth,  and  entirely  unac- 
customed to  any  employment,  the  noblemen  were  left  in 
a  sorry  condition  by  the  Imperial  ukase  of  1861.  Being 
from  almost  time  immemorial  used  to  princely  revenues, 
and  with  a  power  which  exalted  their  pride  to  the  very 
limit  of  aggrandizement,  the  aristocratic  lords  were  pre- 
cipitated, in  a  day,  to  the  level  of  their  minions,  and  we 
are  not  surprised  to  learn  that  they  felt  bitter  toward 
the  Government.  This  intense  hatred  soon  developed 
into  an  active  opposition,  which  culminated  in  Nihilism. 
The  noblemen  were  educated,  and  their  former  position, 
an  aroma  of  which  still  clings  to  them,  gave  them  that 
influence  among  the  ignorant  classes  which  they  have 
wielded  so  potentially  ever  since.  Keeping  behind  the 
scenes  themselves,  they  have  used  those  whom  flattering 
speech  and  promises  of  an  Utopia  could  beguile,  to 
commit  revolutionary  acts.  The  students,  who  are  al- 
most continually  committing  some  overt  act  against  the 
Government,  are  the  sons  of  those  old  noblemen  who 
have  transmitted  their  grievances  and  who  look  to  the 
second  generation  for  areclaimation  of  their  rights. 

There  is  a  vast  difference  between  Communism  and  Ni- 
hilsm  in  Russia,  the  latter  being  far  the  more  radical  and 
aggressive,  with  less  direction  of  purpose.  During  the 
early  years  of  Alexander  L,  and  following  quipkly  upon 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  KlliEiMA.  91 

the  overthrow  of  Napoleon,  Russia,  in  common  with  all 
Europe,  shouted  herself  hoarse  in  an  enthusiasm  for  na- 
tionality. At  this  time  the  "  Slavophils  "  were  the  na- 
tional reactionists,  with  many  discordant  elements  which 
prevented  homogeniety  among  them. 

During  the  reign  of  Nicholas  the  existence  of  even  a 
shadowy  form  of  liberalism  was  rendered  impossible  by 
the  energetic  action  of  thousands  of  secret  police, 
though  at  Moscow  there  were  individual  liberalists,  no 
two  being  in  concert,  however,  so  that  of  an  organization 
there  was  not  the  least  semblance.  But  toward  the 
close  of  Nicholas'  reign  a  group  of  students  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Moscow  began  a  discussion  with  the  view  of 
securing  refuge  from  the  absolutism  which  hedged  them 
about  in  almost  helpless  conscription  of  thought  and  ac- 
tion. This  idea  was  no  doubt  created  by  a  study  of  He- 
gel's and  Sch  tiling's  -philosophy,  particularly  the  former, 
which  excited  such  an  interest  among  the  students  that 
there  developed  a  mania  for  his  works  to  the  neglect  of 
all  other  studies. 

There  were  two  parties  among  these  incipient  philoso- 
phers, one  of  which  was  under  the  leadership  of  Alexander 
Herzen,  who  inclined  to  French  Socialism,  while  the  other 
branch  recognized  as  their  champions  Aksakof,  Kiriec- 
vskis  and  Samarin,  who  clung  tenaciously  to  the  Hege- 
lian school  until  they  progressed  into  Romanticists. 
Their  ideas  finally  crystalized  around  the  belief  that 
Western  Europe  was  in  a  vortex  of  ruin,  while  Russia 
alone  remained  in  that  state  of  youth  and  vigor  as  gave 
promise,  through  the  adoption  of  measures  they  advo- 
vocated,  of  reaching  the  highest  plane  in  science,  art  and 
cultured  civilization. 

To  better  accomplish  their  purpose,  these  fanatical 
students  adopted  the  garb  of  the  peasantry,  wearing  their 


92  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


shirts  over  their  trowsers  and  going  about  in  sleeveless 
jackets  to  the  great  astonishment  of  Moscow.  This 
move  was  to  obtain  the  favor  of  a  major  class  as  well 
also  as  to  manifest  their  sincerity. 

Hegel's  philosophy  of  history  taught  that  a  new  race, 
to  have  dominion  over  the  world,  must  be  the  messengers 
of  new  ideas  and  principles  ;  the  discovery,  therefore,  of 
the  system  of  Russian  Communism  by  Baron  Von  Hox- 
thansen  in  1842,  was  accepted  by  the  Slavophils  as  a  rev- 
elation of  the  idea  and  principle  upon  which  was  to  be  es- 
tablished the  Pan-Sclavonic  nation  of  the  future.  This 
firmly  imbedded  belief  became,  as  it  were,  the  very  con- 
stitution of  Communism,  and  was  the  basis  upon  which 
Herzen  builded  his  Socialism.  Associated  with  the  dem- 
ocratic tendency  of  the  Slavophils  to  regenerate  the  nation 
through  the  common  people,  was  their  fidelity  to  the 
Church,  which  it  was  positively  believed  had  protected 
them  from  Protestant  infidelity  and  Papal  oppression. 

This  school  of  enthusiasts,  though  small  in  numbers  for 
several  years,  had  no  little  influence,  and  by  the  mani- 
festation of  almost  unexampled  persistency  they  at  length 
began  to  grow  in  numbers  with  great  rapidity,  while 
with  their  growth  they  became  more  pronounced  in  a 
developing  sympathy  with  extreme  radicalism. 

In  1860  the  celebrated  novelist,  Ivan  Tourguenief ,  in 
a  popular  story,  applied  the  term  "Nihilists"  to  the 
Hegelian  Slavophils,  whom  he  accused  of  a  desire  to  de- 
stroy everything.  But  the  word  "Nihilism"  was  used 
as  a  synonym  for  scepticism  many  years  before  by  Roy- 
ercollard  and  Victor  Hugo.  Alexander  Herzen  has 
been  credited  with  being  the  founder  of  Nihilism,  but 
this  is  a  mistake,  the  real  part  he  acted  being  that  of  an 
Evangelist  of  Nihilistic  doctrines  in  Russia.  Associated 
with  Herzen  were  Tshernikevski  and  Bakunin,  the  latter 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

of  whom  succeeded  Herzen  in  the  editorship  of  the 
famous  Kolokol.  Under  Herzen,  this  organ  advocated  re- 
forms and  the  introduction  of  Socialism  with  a  modera- 
tion, however,  in  all  its  articles  which  made  it  respected 
by  all  parties,  but  under  Bakunin  it  changed  from  a 
radical  into  a  revolutionary  journal  and  in  a  fiery,  un- 
reasonable manner  advocated  the  subversion  of  both 
Church  and  State,  even  at  the  expense  of  chaos.  The 
violent  manner  in  which  Bakunin  agitated  his  declared 
Nihilistic  purpose  may  be  better  judged  by  the  fol- 
lowing extracts  from  a  manifesto,  which  he  issued  in  18G8 
on  behalf  of  an  organization  calling  itself  the  "  Alliance 
Internationale  de  la  Democratic  Socialiste,"  of  which  he 
was  the  head  : 

"  Brethren,  I  come  to  announce  unto  you  a  new  gospel, 
which  must  penetrate  to  the  very  ends  of  the  world. 
*  *  The  old  world  must  be  destroyed  and  replaced 
by  a  new  one.  *• .  *  •  The  Lie  must  be  stamped  out, 
and  give  way  to  Truth.  *  *  *  The  first  lie  is  God; 
the  second  lie  is  Right  >  and  when  you  have 

freed  your  minds  from  the  fear  of  a  God,  and  from  that 
childish  respect  for  the  fiction  of  Eight :,  then  all  the  re- 
maining chains  that  bind  you,  and  which  are  called  science, 
civilization,  property,  marriage,  morality,  and  justice, 
will  snap  asunder  like  threads.  *  *  *  Let  your  own 
happiness  be  your  only  law.  *  *  *  Our  first  work 
must  be  destruction  and  annihilation  of  everything  as  it 
now  exists  ;  you  must  accustom  yourselves  to  destroy 
everything,  the  good  with  the  bad  ;  for  if  but  an  atom  of 
this  old  world  remains,  the  new  will  never  be  created." 

It  is  unfortunate  that  some  zealous  pupil  of  the  fanati- 
cal agitator  did  not  accept  this  advice  and  begin  the 
work  of  destruction,  for  the  upbuilding  of  a  new  world, 
by  putting  a  quietus  on  Bakunin, 


94  RUSSIAN   NIHILISM  AND 

Another  writer  of  seditious  pamphlets  in  Russia  makes 
use  of  this  language  : 

44  Down  with  instruction  and  science;  we  have  had 
enough  of  it  for  a  thousand  years.  The  thirst  for  it  is 
an  aristocratic  one  which,  like  the  desire  for  conjugal 
felicity,  engenders  a  love  of  wealth.  We  must  extirpate 
this  taste,  and  develop  in  its  place  drunkenness,  backbit- 
ing, and  a  corruption  till  now  unknown.  All  geniuses 
must  be  stifled  in  their  cradles.  So  we  shall  arrive  at  a 
perfect  equality." 

It  is  difficult  to  find  a  reason  why  such  insane  declara- 
tions find  favor  among  any  people,  much  less  among  the 
Nihilist  teachers,  who  belong  to  the  more  intelligent  and 
educated  class.  Yet  according  to  the  declarations  made 
by  Solovieff,  the  Emperor's  would-be  assassin,  in  his 
confession,  more  than  three-fourths  of  all  the  Nihilists 
with  whom  he  was  connected  were  formerly  students  of 
the  universities. 

Signor  Arnando,  who  has  made  a  special  study  of  Ni- 
hilism, and  who  writes  so  intelligently  on  the  subject,  says  : 
"The  association  of  so  many  Russian  youths  of  culture 
with  doctrines  so  utterly  at  variance  with  common  sense 
and  humanity,  may  be  explained  in  three  ways.  First, 
the  Russians  understand  science  easily,  and  like  the  study 
of  it,  provided  it  is  all  prepared  for  them  by  others. 
This  accounts  for  the  fact  that  Russia  has  produced  very 
little  original  talent.  Secondly,  the  rising  generation 
shows  a  great  tendency  toward  idleness,  and  a  great  lik- 
ing for  conversations  and  discussions.  It  has  two  defects  : 
It  is  too  easily  excited  and  never  thoroughly  investigates 
a  subject.  The  Russian  youths  are  intelligent,  and  ap- 
propriate with  extraordinary  promptitude  all  that  comes 
to  them  from  abroad,  but  they  take  it  as  it  comes  and 
build  their  own  theories  upon  it.  Thirdly,  as  Professor 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  95 

Fleury  has  remarked,  all  the  young  men  and  women  that 
frequent  the  universities  show  the  same  inaptitude  for 
reasoning  and  abstract  ideas  ;  their  minds  seize  and  retain 
particulars  and  details,  but  with  difficulty  surmount  the 
conception  of  generality  and  collectiveness." 


CHAPTER  V. 

TROUBLE  grew  apace  in  Russia  after  the  liberation  of 
the  serfs,  in  which  even  the  freedmen  were  inclined 
against  their  sovereign.  They  began  to  grumble  because 
the  Czar  had  not  given  them  their  freedom  without  im- 
posing a  burden  which  it  would  require  years  of  hard 
labor  for  them  to  remove. 

In  1863  Poland,  that  had  dreamed  of  an  untrammelled 
autonomy,  at  least  since  1815,  became  the  scene  of  a 
bloody  insurrection,  while  all  over  Russia  blazed  up  in- 
cendiary fires,  and  St.  Petersburg  was  threatened  with 
destruction.  It  was  a  gloomy  period,  but  Alexander  did 
not  exhibit  any  other  disposition  than  that  of  determina- 
tion. He  argued  that  if  a  people  will  not  be  satisfied  with 
the  perfecting  of  reforms  as  rapidly  as  the  condition  of 
affairs  would  permit,  the  safest  policy  to  pursue  was  coer- 
cion. Accordingly  the  insurrection  in  Poland  was  put 
down  by  a  liberal,  if  not  unmerciful,  use  of  ball  and 
steel.  He  now  began  to  receive  mysterious  warnings 
that  his  life  was  in  danger,  but  reckoning  these  as  the 
idle  fancies  or  ulterior  designs  of  zealots,  he  gave  no  heed 
or  care  to  such  communications,  until  April  16,  1866,  a 
young  Pole  named  Karakozoff,  who  was  employed  by 
the  revolutionary  committee,  made  an  attempt  upon  the 
Emperor's  life.  It  was  on  Sunday  afternoon,  when  the 


1)6  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Czar  was  about  to  take  his  customary  walk  in  the  Sum- 
mer Garden.  A  large  crowd  had  collected  near  the 
gates  fronting  the  quay  on  the  Neva  to  witness  his  Maj- 
esty's departure.  At  the  moment  he  was  crossing  the 
pavement  to  enter  his  sledge,  a  man  stepped  hurriedly 
forward  from  the  crowd  and  presenting  a  pistol,  which 
he  had  drawn  from  beneath  a  large  cloak,  fired  at  the 
Emperor.  Fortunately  for  his  Majesty  a  peasant  hap- 
pened to  be  standing  very  near  the  assassin  and  having 
observed  something  suspicious  in  the  movements  of  the 
criminal,  jumped  forward  in  time  to  knock  the  pistoi  up 
and  thus  save  the  Emperor's  life,  when  immediately  the 
man  was  arrested.  The  peasant  who  had  saved  the  Czar's 
life  was  named  Kamissaroff,  and  in  gratitude  for  his  es- 
cape the  Emperor  granted  a  liberal  annuity  to  the  fortu- 
nate peasant,  besides  creating  him  a  noble. 

As  an  example  of  the  number  of  superstitious  stories 
that  were  universally  accepted  by  the  common  people  as 
true,  and  were  gravely  published  in  the  Russian  papers 
as  authentic  facts,  the  following  may  be  quoted  : 

At  three  o'clock  on  the  day  when  the  attempt  was 
made,  the  people  of  Rappenberg,  a  smail  town  in  the 
Government  of  Riazan,  which  was  the  native  place  of 
Kamissaroff,  were  startled  by  the  detonating  peals  of 
the  alarm  bell.  On  rushing  to  the  church  to  learn  the 

O 

cause,  the  people  were  greatly  terrified  to  perceive  that 
there  was  no  one  in  the  belfry  ;  that  the  rope  still  hung 
unmolested  on  a  hook  in  the  wall,  and  that  the  bell  had 
rung  of  itself.  Three  days  later  the  St.  Petersburg  pa- 
pers reached  Rappenberg,  containing  an  account  of  the 
attempt  on  the  Emperor's  life,  when  instantly  the  people 
were  satisfied  why  the  mysterious  warning  had  been 
given. 

It  was  only  natural  that  this  first  attempt  on  the  life  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  97 

the  Czar,  whose  reign  had  been  consistently  manned  by  a 
long  series  of  popular  reforms,  should  produce  through- 
out the  Empire  a  feeling  of  intense  indignation,  but  at 
the  time  it  was  hoped  that  Karakozoff's  crime  was  noth- 
ing more  than  the  rash  work  of  a  small  and  not  very 
powerful  revolutionary  party  in  Poland.  All  such  hopes, 
however,  were  soon  dissipated,  and  from  the  facts  brought 
out  at  the  trial  it  became  evident  that  the  Nihilists  were 
already  a  strong  and  dangerous  organization,  with  a  code 
of  laws  and  disciplined  forces,  as  will  hereafter  be  ex- 
plained. 

Karakozoff  was  brought  to  trial,  found  guilty  and  con- 
demned to  be  hanged,  but  the  sentence  of  death  was 
commuted  by  the  Emperor  to  transportation  to  Siberia 
for  life. 

The  following  year,  1867,  another  attempt  to  assassi- 
nate the  Czar  was  made  while  his  majesty  was  driving 
through  the  streets  of  Paris,  with  his  two  sons  and  the 
Emperor,  Napoleon  III.  This  second  attack  was  also 
made  by  a  Pole,  named  Berezovsky,  who  fired  at  the  Em- 
peror, but  happily  with  imperfect  aim.  No  further  overt 
act  of  the  Nihilists  was  committed  until  in  1870,  when  a 
party  of  students  were  arrested  for  incendiary  speeches 
and  the  publication  of  a  paper  filled  with  revolutionary 
articles  intending  to  incite  the  people  against  the  Czar. 
Among  the  sixteen  that  were  arrested  at  this  time  was  one 
named  Sergius  Netschaief ,  who  disclosed  the  furious  zeal 
with  which  Russian  students  of  the  advanced  school  em- 
brace the  wildest  doctrines  of  Socialism.  In  addition  to 
this  he  also  described  the  Nihilist  organization,  and  as 
these  statements  have  been  frequently  verified  by  other 
Nihilists  who  turned  informers  after  their  arrest,  they 
may  be  accepted  as  true. 

The  organization  is  divided  into  groups  of  members^ 


98  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

each  group  having  either  five,  ten  or  fifteen  members  who 
are  under  the  authority  of  a  chief,  who  alone  is  in  imme- 
diate communication  with  the  commander  of  twenty 
groups.  These  commanders  hold  intercourse  with  the 
executive  committee,  but  only  through  a  delegate.  The 
executive  committee  forms  the  center  of  the  Nihilist  party 
and  serves  to  the  maintenance  of  the  most  strict  and  se- 
cret discipline.  The  slightest  act  of  treachery  or  disobe- 
dience to  its  orders  is  punished  by  death.  Many  bodies 
of  murdered  men  have  been  discovered  in  the  cities  or 
highways  of  Russia,  a  small  dagger  piercing  the  corpse,  to 
which  a  scroll  was  attached  bearing  the  significant  in- 
scription ,  ' '  Death  for  Treachery . ' ' 

Recruiting  the  ranks  is  done  in  this  manner :  There 
are  recruiting  officers  whose  duty  it  is  to  search  out  per- 
sons whom  it  is  desirable  to  have  in  the  organization,  and 
this  is  done  in  the  following  way  :  A  man  of  apparent 
intelligence  but  of  evident  poverty,  of  whom  there  are 
thousands  in  every  part  of  Russia,  is,  for  instance,  seen 
haunting  some  park  or  public  place  for  want  of  occupa- 
tion. The  recruiting  officer  watches  him  from  day  to  day 
until  satisfied  that  the  man  is  in  sore  need,  when  he  cas- 
ually approaches  him  and  engages  at  first  in  a  general 
conversation.  An  acquaintance  is  thus  formed,  and  famil- 
iarity soon  draws  from  the  man  an  admission  of  his 
poverty  and  a  desire  to  engage  in  anything  that  promises 
even  such  compensation  as  would  afford  him  a  livelihood. 
The  officer  suddenly  remembers  that  he  has  a  friend  who 
is  desirous  of  engaging  a  confidential  agent,  and  proffers 
an  introduction  and  recommendation.  The  poor  fellow 
is,  of  course,  elated  at  the  prospect  of  securing  employ- 
ment and  is  punctual  in  keeping  the  appointment,  which 
is  arranged  for.  He  is  told  by  the  third  person  that  a 
vacancy  exists,  who  offers  the  position  with  a  salary  of  one 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  99 

or  two  hundred  roubles  per  month  to  the  happy  expect- 
ant, who  is  immediately  engaged.  The  poor  man  is  re- 
quired to  report  from  day  to  day  at  the  headquarters  of 
his  employer,  but  has  nothing  in  particular  to  do  for  per- 
haps two  or  three  months.  He  is  gradually  prepared  in 
the  meantime  for  serious  service  .by  prejudicing  his  mind 
against  the  Government  and  in  favor  of  the  Nihilists,  who 
are  represented  as  a  band  of  patriots  whose  aims  are  all 
for  the  eradication  of  evils  which  have  long  oppressed  the 
people.  Thus,  without  acquainting  him  with  the  duties 
he  is  expected  to  perform,  the  person  controlling  his 
services  at  length  fortifies  him  for  the  obligation  which  he 
is  soon  after  compelled  to  take.  When  these  prepara- 
tions are  completed  the  man  may  be  called  on  to  assist  in 
laying  a  dynamite  mine,  lighting  an  incendiary  fire,  or  to 
commit  murder.  If  he  rebels  at  such  orders  he  is  told  of 
his  engagement  and  that  his  services  belong  to  the  execu- 
tive committee  of  Nihilists  who  will  hold  him  to  a  serious 
accountability.  In  other  words,  there  is  the  alternative 
of  death  or  obedience,  for  he  is  now  known  to  the  com- 
mittee without  in  turn  knowing  the  members,  and  it  is 
'only  in  rare  instances  that  he  will  incur  the  danger  which 
he  is  soon  convinced  will  surely  follow  disobedience. 

In  this  way  hundreds  of  recruits  are  made  in  addition 
to  the  large  number  who  volunteer  their  services.  The 
expenses  of  this  bloody  organization  are  defrayed  out  of 
a  general  fund  which  is  created  by  subscriptions  raised  by 
committees  in  foreign  countries,  particularly  in  Switzer- 
land, France  and  England,  and  also  by  contributions  from 
noblemen,  whose  influence  and  purses  are  almost  univer- 
sally placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  revolutionary  party. 


100  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


CHAPTEK  VI. 

THE  war  with  Turkey,  declared  on  April  12,  1877,  as 
might  be  expected,  gave  fresh  life  and  energy  to  the 
cause  of  Nihilism,  which  had  for  its  object  the  securing 
of  liberty  at  home.  This  war  was  ostensibly  waged  for 
the  protection  of  Christians  who  were  living  under  Mos- 
lum  rule.  When  peace  was  concluded  and  a  Representa- 
tive Chamber  was  opened  in  Bulgaria,  Russia  was  the 
only  European  country  that  did  not  enjoy  a  constitu- 
tional Government  more  or  less  developed.  The  action 
of  the  Czar  in  declaring  the  freedom  of  Bulgaria  and 
granting  special  privileges  and  autonomy  to  that  country, 
while  refusing  like  privileges  to  his  own  people,  inflamed 
the  Nihilists  anew  and  greatly  strengthened  their  organi- 
zation. 

For  a  while  the  Nihilist  leaders  believed  that  the  end 
they  had  in  view  could  be  attained  by  striking  a  mortal 
blow  at  officialism,  and  this  is  proved  by  the  fact  that— 
not  counting  the  attempt  made  at  Paris  by  the  Polish 
advocate  Berezovsky — an  interval  of  no  less  than  thirteen 
years  elapsed  between  the  attempt  made  on  the  Empe- 
ror's life  by  Karakozoff  and  that  made  by  Solovieff  in 
1879.  In  that  interval  General  Trepoff,  then  Police 
Master  of  St.  Petersburg,  was  severely  wounded  by  Vera 
Zassulitch  ;  General  Mezentrieff,  Chief  of  the  Secret  Po- 
lice Department,  was  mortally  wounded  ;  and  General 
Drenteln,  his  successor,  was  shot  at.  Of  all  that  have 
within  the  last  thirty  years  occupied  the  high  post  of 
Police  Master  of  St.  Petersburg,  General  Trepoff,  without 
doubt,  was  the  most  energetic  and  most  zealous.  But 
like  most  comparatively  irresponsible  officials,  he  was  fre- 
quently apt  to  take  the  law  into  his  own  hands,  and  dur- 


5        RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


of  'power  succeeded  in  amassing  an  enor- 
mous fortune.  Thus,  once  when  on  a  visit  of  inspection 
at  the  Fortress,  one  of  the  political  prisoners,  a  certain 
Bogolouboff  ,  not  having  saluted  him  —  though  it  was  later 
most  clearly  proved  that  he  had  done  so—  had  his  cap 
knocked  off  by  the  irate  General  and  was  ordered  to  be 
whipped,  a  sentence  which,  though  manifestly  in  viola- 
tion of  all  Russian  law,  was  executed  within  twenty-four 
hours.  The  whipping,  somehow,  in  spite  of  all  efforts  to 
have  the  affair  hushed  up,  got  public,  and  more  than  one 
paper  even  ventured  to  expose  the  illegal  nature  of  the 
punishment.  Vera  Zassulitch,  who  had  not  long  quitted 
one  of  the  Government  educational  institutes,  and  who, 
as  was  alleged,  had  been  on  intimate  relations  with  Bogo- 
louboff,  heard  of  the  humiliation  to  which  he  had  been 
subjected  and  determined  to  revenge  him.  For  this 
purpose  she  came  up  to  St.  Petersburg  from  her  country 
home  in  the  Government  of  Yaroslaff,  and  presenting 
herself  at  the  Police  Master's  official  residence  on  one  of 
his  public  reception  days,  whilst  pretending  to  give  a 
petition  into  his  hands,  drew  forth  a  pistol  from  under 
her  coat,  and  wounded  the  General  so  severely  that  his 
life  for  several  days  was  despaired  of,  and  he  was  com- 
pelled to  retire  finally  from  all  public  duties.  The  woman 
was  arrested,  and  after  long  preliminary  examinations  was 
brought  to  trial.  There  was  no  doubt  of  her  guilt,  nor 
did  she  in  any  way  attempt  to  deny  it  ;  but  on  the  con- 
trary gave  to  the  court  a  full  and  precise  account  of  the 
reasons  that  had  prompted  her  to  commit  the  crime. 
The  effect  of  her  defence  was  so  great  that  the  jury,  after 
a  short  deliberation,  brought  in  a  verdict  of  not  guilty. 
The  Litenaya,  a  wide  street  in  which  the  court  where 
she  was  tried  is  situated,  was  thronged  with  a  crowd  of 
people  anxiously  awaiting  the  result,  and  when  the  fact 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  103 

of  her  acquittal  became  known,  the  verdict  was  received 
with  the  most  uproarious  applause,  and  a  serious  collision 
took  place  between  the  people  and  the  police,  in  the 
course  of  which  several  persons  were  killed,  but  Vera 
was  rushed  away  by  the  sympathizing  mob  and  concealed 
in  a  neighboring  house.  What  is  most  remarkable,  how- 
ever, is  that  the  metropolis  press,  without  a  single  excep- 
tion, warmly  approved  of  her  acquittal,  one  paper  declar- 
ing the  verdict  to  be  "the  voice  of  God;"  and  the 
Moscow  Gazatte,  the  avowed  organ  of  the  Retrogradists, 
was  singular  in  its  condemnation  of  what  it  declared  to 
be  "a  gross  miscarriage  of  injustice." 

A  resident  of  St.  Petersburg,  who  was  present  a't  the 
trial  of  Vera  Zassulitch,  and  who  was  familiar  with  her 
life,  gave  me  the  following  history  of  the  woman  :  She  was 
the  daughter  of  a  Russian  officer  in  high  rank,  and  at  the 
time  of  committing  the  crime  was  twenty-eight  years  of 
age.  She  was  a  well  educated  and  attractive  lady,  but 
so  thoroughly  imbued  with  revolutionary  doctrines  that 
she  sacrificed  all  other  interests  for  the  cause  of  Nihi- 
lism, though  it  is  not  known  that  she  contributed  any- 
thing more  dangerous  than  her  influence ;  notwithstand- 
ing this,  for  more  than  eleven  years  preceding  her  attack 
upon  Gen.  Trepoff,  she  endured  continual  persecu- 
tions at  the  hands  of  the  police,  and  it  is  to  the  sympa- 
thy universally  evoked  by  the  account  of  her  sufferings 
that  she  mainly  owed  her  acquittal  from  the  terrible 
crime  of  which  she  was  manifestly  guilty,  and  that  the 
great  populur  enthusiasm  with  which  the  verdict  was  re- 
ceived in  Russia  is  due.  At  the  age  of  seventeen,  while 
trying  to  support  herself  as  a  bookbinder  at  St.  Peters- 
burg, she  was  arrested,  owing  to  being  the  intimate  school- 
friend  of  a  young  lady  named  Netchaieff ,  whose  brother 
had  just  been  implicated  in  some  conspiracy  at  Moscow. 


104 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


According  to  some  accounts,  Yera  Zassulitch  acted  as  a 
species  of  go-between  and  letter-carrier ;  but  this  is  not 
confirmed,  and,  be  her  offence  what  it  might,  she  was 
closely  imprisoned  for  two  years  without  the  slightest 
shadow  of  a  trial.  A  few  days  after  her  release,  more- 
over, she  was  again  arrested  for  no  ostensible  reason, 
and  carried  off  this  time  to  Eastern  Russia,  and  might 


VERA  ZASSULITCH. 


have  perished  with  cold  on  the  journey  had  not  a  kind 
gendarme  lent  her  his  cloak.  She  remained  at  Krestsi, 
in  the  province  of  Novgorod,  under  police  supervision 
for  two  more  years,  and  in  1871  was  allowed  to  go  to 
Tver  to  live  with  a  brother-in-law,  also  a  political  exile. 
The  latter,  however,  getting  into  trouble,  owing  to  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  105 

dissemination  of  prohibited  books,  Vera  Zassulitch  was 
once  more  arrested  and  brought  to  St.  Petersburg.  In 
1873  she  was  transferred  to  Kharkoff ,  and  in  1875  was 
at  last  liberated.  From  that  time  she  appears  to  have 
lived  in  retirement  until  July,  1876,  when  her  feelings 
were  excited  by  the  details  of  -the  cruel  treatment  of  a 
political  prisoner  named  Bogoluboff,  who  had  been  flog- 
ged by  order  of  General  Trepoff ,  the  Prefect  of  Police 
at  St.  Petersburg,  for  some  act  of  insubordination,  but 
mainly  because  he  had  neglected  to  take  off  his  cap  on 
meeting  that  official  for  a  second  time  in  the  prison  pre- 
cincts. As  Vera  Zassulitch  well  knew  the  hardships  of 
prison  life,  and  the  tyranny  of  the  officials,  this  story 
made  an  intense  impression  on  her  mind,  and,  after  wait- 
ing some  time  to  see  if  any  official  notice  would  be  given 
to  the  affair,  she  determined  to  take  the  matter  in  hand 
herself,  and,  in  her  own  words,  "At  the  price  of  my 
own  ruin  to  draw  public  attention  to  the  affair,  and  prove 
that  a  human  being  may  not  be  insulted  in  that  way  with 
impunity.  It  is  a  terrible  thing  to  raise  one's  hand 
against  a  fellow  creature,  but  I  could  find  no  other 
means.  ...  It  was  all  the  same  to  me  whether  I 
killed  or  wounded  the  Prefect,  and  when  I  fired  at  him  I 
did  not  aim  at  any  particular  place."  To  be  brief,  Vera 
Zassulitch  sought  an  interview  with  General  Trepoff  in 
his  reception  room,  and  then  and  there  shot  him  in  the 
side  with  a  revolver.  For  this  she  was  brought  to  trial 
early  in  the  month,  the  jury  before  whom  she  appeared 
being  half  composed  of  Government  officials,  the  re- 
mainder being  formed  of  persons  in  good  position.  The 
result  was  a  verdict  of  "  Not  Guilty,"  a  decision  which  was 
greeted  with  tremendous  -enthusiasm  by  an  audience  com- 
posed of  some  600  persons,  the-applause  being  taken  up  by 
the  crowd  outside.  On  her  appearance  a  perfect  tumult  en- 


10(5  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

sued,  and  numerous  arrests  were  made  by  the  police,  sev- 
eral of  the  rioters  being  shot.  Had  she  not  escaped, 
through  the  aid  of  friends  who  had  a  closed  carriage  in 
waiting,  expecting  her  acquittal,  Vera  Zassulitch  would 
no  doubt  have  been  re-arrested  and  tried  before  a  mili- 
tary Court  Martial,  in  which  event  she  would  have  been 
convicted  a-nd  executed.  But  on  the  other  hand,  so 
.  great  was  the  popular  sympathy  for  her  that  had  the  ver- 
dict of  the  jury  been  "  Guilty,"  no  one  who  is  acquainted 
with  the  intense  feeling  manifested  in  her  interest  can  for 
a  moment  doubt  that  the  mob  would  have  rushed  into  the 
court-room  and  torn  to  pieces  not  only  the  jurors  but  also 
the  judges  a-nd  prosecutors.  She  is  supposed  to  be  in 
Switzerland,  under  protection  of  an  assumed  name  and 
the  revolutionary  party,  but  others  stoutly  maintain  that 
she  was  captured  and  secretly  put  to  death. 

Later  events  have  proved  that  the  acquittal  of  Zassulitch, 
even  more  than  the  clemency  shown  to  Karakozoff,  was 
a  mistake.  The  Nihilists  only  became  bolder  in  their 
operations  than  they  had  shown  themselves  to  be  before. 
The  attack  on  Mezentrieff  soon  followed.  In  spile  of 
the  hateful  office  which  he  held,  the  high  character  he 
bore  had  long  won  for  him  general  and  ungrudged  es- 
teem. The  plot  against  him  was  most  cautiously  planned 
weeks  before  it  was  carried  into  execution  A  thorough 
bred  horse  and  a  well  furnished  droshky  were  hired,  and 
for  some  mornings  were  regularly  to  be  seen  standing  at 
the  corner  of  Michel  Square  and  the  Italianskaya  street, 
which  the  General  invariably  passed  while  taking  his 
usual  early  morning  walk.  On  a  morning  of  June,  1877, 
as  was  afterward  proved,  the  three  or  four  droshkies 
that  happened  to  be  in  the  street  waiting  to  be  hired  were 
engaged  by  persons  privy  to  the  plot,  so  that  any  attempt 
to  arrest  them  could  be  rendered,  if  not  impossible,  at 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  107 

least  very  difficult.  As  the  General,  in  company  with 
M.  Makaroff,-  his  aid-de-camp,  approached  the  corner,  a 
man  extremely  well  dressed  came  quickly  up  as  if  intend- 
ing to  speak  to  him,  and  with  a  dagger  stabbed  him  twice. 
The  blows  were  so  instantaneously  given  that  M.  Makar- 
off, who  just  then  had  fallen  a  few  steps  behind,  had  no 
time  to  interfere,  the  assassins  having  leaped  into  the 
droshky  th'at  was  waiting  and  drove  off  down  the  Sado- 
vaya  street  and  across  the  Nevski  at  a  furious  rate.  It 
is  true  that  a  soldier,  who  had  seen  the  whole  affair,  pur- 
sued the  criminals  for  some  little  distance,  but  they  were 
soon  out  of  sight,  nor  were  the  real  murderers  arrested 
till  after  the  terrible  assassination  of  March  13, 1881.  In 
the  meantime,  M.  Makaroff  hurried  up  to  the  Gen- 
eral and  raising  him  up  with  the  assistance  of  those  who 
had  run  to  the  spot  in  answer  to  his  cries  for  help,  asked 
him  how  he  felt:  "I  am  dying,"  was  the  reply,  and 
when  conveyed  home  the  doctors  who  were  summoned  de- 
clared that  there  was  no  hope  of  recovery.  He,  however, 
lingered  in  great  agony  till  about  five  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon. The  crime,  from  its  daringness  and  from  the  well 
arranged  skill  with  which  it  was  carried  out,  naturally 
caused  a  great  sensation,  and  the  question,  what  measures 
should  be  taken  for  the  prevention  of  such-  crimes  in 
the  future,  was  anxiously  debated  by  the  Imperial  Min- 
isters in  council. 

It  would  appear  that  no  decision  was  immediately  come 
to.  But  before  long  a  fresh  and  all  but  successful  at- 
tempt on  the  life  of  the  Emperor  convinced  those  in 
authority  that  in  the  war  they  had  to  wage  with  the 
party  of  Terrorism  there  could  no  longer  be  any  dallying, 
but  that  the  sternest  measures  of  repression  ^rnust  be 
adopted.  On  April  14,  1879,  the  Emperor  was  taking  his 
usual  early  stroll  round  the  Winter  Palace,  when  on  com- 


108  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ing  near  to  that  part  of  the  building  which  adjoins  the 
Hermitage  on  the  Millionaya  side,  he  met  an  individual 
who  stopped  as  if  to  salute  him,  but  drawing  out  a  six  bar- 
reled pistol,  tired  deliberately  three  times  at  the  Emperor, 
none  of  which,  however,  took  effect.  The  would-be  as- 
sassin was  at  once  seized  by  the  police  and  bystanders, 
though  not  before  he  had  made  a  most  desperate  resist- 
ance, and  had  shot  one  of  the  crowd.  As  soon  as  he  was 
secured  he  was  seized  with  fainting,  and  the  fact  that 
poison  was  found  under  his  finger-nails  and  about  him 
led  to  a  suspicion  that  he  had  poisoned  himself .  Emetics 
were  at  once  administered,  and  he  recovered.  On  being 
questioned  the  prisoner  stated  that  his  name  was  Ivan 
Solovieff,  and  that  he  was  employed  in  a  provincial  branch 
of  the  Ministry  of  Finance.  Considerable  anxiety  was 
excited  by  the .  curious  coincidence  that  for  three  days 
before  the  attempt  placards  had  been  posted  on  the  walls 
of  St.  Petersburg,  from  the  Secret  Executive  Committee, 
and  addressed  to  "  Mr.  Alexander  Nicolaievitch,"  and  de- 
claring that  the  invisible  advocates  of  the  people  had  set 
themselves  to  clear  out  the  Augean  stable  of  despotism, 
but  that  neither  the  Czar  nor  any  member  of  the  dynasty 
had  been  threatened.  After  declaring  against  the  army, 
"a  cruel  and  insatiable  army  of  thieves,"  the  tribunals, 
"a  mockery  of  justice,"  and  the  generals,  "so  many 
satraps,"  the  document  concluded,  "Think,  Alexander 
Nicolaievitch,  where  this  must  all  lead.  You  go  directly 
to  perdition,  and  therefore  we  spare  3-0111-  life." 

It  would  seem  that  the  Emperor's  suspicions  had  been 
excited  by  something  that  struck  him  in  Solovieff1  s  gait 
and  manners,  and  that  he  had  furtively  made  a  signal  to 
a  soldier  who  was  on  guard  close  by,  but  that  the  latter, 
failing  to  understand  the  Emperor's  meaning,  only  came 
up  after  the  assassin  had  fired  a  third  time.  Although 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA, 


109 


110  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

the  balls  missed,  the  escape  of  the  Emperor  may  be 
almost  regarded  as  miraculous,  and  was  due  to  the  for- 
tunate circumstance  that  the  Czar,  having  observed  some- 
thing suspicious  in  Solovieff,  almost  before  the  first  shot 
was  fired,  hurried  forward  in  a  zigzag  direction,  and 
turned  under  the  nearest  gateway.  That  same  day  a 
Council  of  Ministers  was  held  under  the  immediate  pres- 
idency of  the  Emperor,  and  it  was  decided  to  declare 
St.  Petersburg,  Moscow,  Kieff,  Odessa,  and  other  large 
cities  of  the  Empire  in  a  state  of  siege,  and  to  appoint 
military  Governors,  with  all  but  unlimited  powers,  over 
provinces  of  which  these  cities  were  the  capitals.  Thus 
General  Guerko,  who  had  won  to  him  self  no  little  renown 
in  the  inarch  across  the  Balkans  during  the  Turkish  cam- 
paign, was  made  military  Governor  of  St.  Petersburg. 

Solovieff  was  soon  brought  to  trial  and  convicted,  and 
on  June  9th  his  execution  took  place  publicly  in  a  field 
near  the  Smolensk  Cemetery  at  St.  Petersburg.  At  an 
early  hour  crowds  had  collected  round  the  scaffold,  and 
when  the  condemned  man  arrived  it  is  estimated  that 
fully  6,000  spectators  were  present.  Soon  after  9  o'clock 
the  authorities  made  their  way  to  the  place  of  execution. 
The  scaffold  was  a  plain  wooden  structure,  painted 
black,  and  surrounded  by  an  iron  rail ;  outside  this  rail 
was  a  strong  guard  of  both  infantry  and  cavalry.  At  a 
quarter  to  ten  the  cart  arrived  in  which  Solovieff  was 
seated  firmly  bound.  He  was  dressed  in  the  black  coat, 
white  trousers  and  cap  usually  worn  by  criminals  of  the 
higher  class,  in  addition  to  which  a  large  black  label  was 
hung  round  his  neck,  on  which  W7ere  the  words,  "  State 
Criminal."  He  was  unbound,  and,  having  ascended  the 
steps  which  led  to  the  scaffold,  with  undaunted  firmness, 
stood  calmly  regarding  the  crowd  while  the  sentence  was 
once  more  read  to  him.  The  newspaper  reporters  alone 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA, 


111 


112  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

seemed  to  attract  his  attention.  The  priest  then  stepped 
up  to  him,  but  his  offers  of  consolation  were  quietly  and 
politely  refused.  The  hangman  then  placed  the  white 
shirt  and  cap  on  the  unfortunate  man,  and  exactly  at  ten 
o'clock,  amid  the  noise  made  by  a  band  of  drummers  se- 
lected from  the  different  regiments,  the  board  was 
dragged  away,  and  after  a  brief  struggle  Solovieff  ceased 
to  exist.  The  body  in  half-an-hour's  time  was  removed 
by  a  strong  escort  of  Cossacks  to  the  place  of  burial. 

The  futility  of  all  repressive  measures  was,  however, 
made  evident  by  subsequent  events.  The  work  of  the  terror- 
ists was  not  interrupted  for  a  single  day,  as  we  now  know 
from  the  confessions  subsequently  made  by  one  of  their 
agents,  a  certain  Goldenberg,  during  his  imprisonment  in 
the  Fortress.  Many  of  the  stories  concerning  their  activ- 
ity are  mere  fictions,  but  the  following  has  been  vouched 
for  on  the  best  authority  :  One  day  General  Drenteln, 
the  successor  of  Mcventrieff,  found  on  the  table  in  his 
office  a  threatening  letter,  and  when  he  had  read  it,  he 
laughingly  turned  to  his  private  adjutant,  the  only  official 
then  in  the  room,  with  the  remark:  "They  might  as 
well  write  their  letters  on  clean  paper."  The  next  morn- 
ing another  letter  was  discovered  on  the  same  spot,  apol- 
ogizing for  the  "  unseemly  appearance  of  the  letter  of 
yesterday,"  and  expressing  a  hope  that  the  present  one 
would  meet  with  the  General's  approval.  Three  years 
later,  after  the  arrest  of  Kousakoff  and  the  other  crimi- 
nals concerned  in  the  assassination  of  the  Emperor,  proofs 
were  forthcoming  of  the  actual  complicity  in  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  Nihilists  of  more  than  one  trusted  official  in 
the  Secret  Police  Department.  But,  as  I  have  said,  the 
party  of  terror  all  this  time  continued  their  work.  Ac- 
cording to  the  statement  made  by  Fliaboff  at  the  great 
State  Trial  in  March,  1882,  the  central  committee  decided 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  113 

* 

in  August,  1879,  to  make  a  mine  under  the  railroad  from 
Krusk  to  Moscow,  about  17  versts  from  the  latter  city, 
the  mine  to  be  blown  up  when  the  train  should  pass  with  the 
Emperor  and  his  suite  on  their  return  from  Livadia  in 
the  Crimea.  A  small  house  was  hired  near  the  railway, 
and  an  underearth  passage  was  dug  from  the  house  up  to 
the  right-hand  rail,  the  work  being  carried  on  with  the 
greatest  circumspection.  It  is  strange  and  at  the  same 
time  shows  how  ineffective  Russian  police  administration 
is,  that  a  work  of  such  dimensions  and  requiring  a  long 
period  of  time  for  its  execution,  could  have  been  carried 
out  without  exciting  the  suspicions  of  the  police  ;  the  more 
so  as  it  had  been  noticed  that  carts  and  wagons  containing 
packages  more  or  less  heavy  were  frequently  of  an  even- 
ing driven  into  the  courtyard  and  there  unloaded.  The 
Imperial  authorities,  it  is  true,  wisely  adopted  the  most 
stringent  methods  of  precaution.  Thus  not  only  one  or 
two  pilot  trains  were  sent  along  the  whole  line,  but  thn 
train  in  which  the  Emperor  was  traveling  was  made  to  run 
along  the  left  instead  of  the  right  track.  The  explosion, 
which  took  place  on  the  evening  of  Dec.  1,  1879,  proved 
to  be  extremely  violent.  It  tore  up  the  ground  for  a  consider- 
able distance,  destroyed  several  of  the  carriages,  and  severe- 
ly wounded  four  or  five  persons.  But,  of  course,  it  did  not 
touch  the  Emperor,  who  had  already  passed  half  an  hour 
previously  in  another  train.  When  the  place  was  search- 
ed, it  was  discovered  that  the  criminals,  the  principal  ones 
being  Fliaboff  and  his  mistress,  must  at  the  moment  the 
connecting  wire  was  fired  have  escaped  through  the  back 
door  of  the  house,  and  availing  themselves  of  the  dark 
night  easily  succeeded  in  escaping.  The  house  was  found 
to  be  furnished  in  such  a  manner  as  to  perfectly  disarm 
all  suspicion.  On  the  walls  were  hung  portraits  of  the 
reigning  Emperor  and  Empress  as  well  as  of  the  crown 


114 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


prince  and  princess,  whilst  a  lump  was  burning  before  the 
holy  image  of  St.  Nicholas  in  the  corner'of  the  room  front- 
ing the  door.  Behind  the  sofa  the  lower  part  of  the  wall 
close  to  the  floor  liad  been  removed,  from  which  point  the 


excavation  had  been  made.  The  greatest  indignation  was 
excited  throughout  Russia  by  the  news  of  the  attempt, 
and  the  most  enthusiastic  popular  greeting  accorded  to  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  115 

.Czar,  who  in  his  speech  to  the  Moscow  authorities  alluded 
to  his  escape  with  devout  thankfulness,  but  added  :  "  The 
Revolutionary  spirit  must  be  exterminate^,  and  I  therefore 
turn  to  you  and  all  well-thinking  men  for  help  in  eradi- 
cating the  evil,  which  has  taken  deep  root."  Curiously 
enough,  this  dastardly  outrage'  occurred  after  a  special 
act  of  clemency.  At  a  trial  of  Socialists  which  took  place 
at  St.  Petersburg,  one  young  man,  Mirsky,  who  attempt- 
ed to  assassinate  General  Drenteln,  being  condemned  to 
death,  was  subsequently  reprieved  ;  while  another,  named 
Karkoff,  had  his  sentence  remitted  from  hard  labor  in  the 
Siberian  mines  to  ten  years'  imprisonment  in  a  fortress. 
Though  numerous  arrests  were  made,  110  real  clue  was 
discovered,  and  the  true  history  of  the  attempt  became 
known  only  after  the  death  of  the  late  Emperor.  Nor 
were  the  terrorists  discouraged  by  their  repeated  failures. 
Several  of  the  leaders  of  the  movement,  among  others 
the  notorious  Hartmaim,  arrived  in  Russia  from  abroad  ; 
the  services  of  experts  well  versed  in  the  preparation  of 
dynamite  explosions,  as  for  example,  Kiebalchitch,  were 
secured,  and  Fiiaboff  had  placed  under  his  immediate  or- 
ders forty-seven  men  who  were  pledged  to  obey  him  im- 
plicitly and  to  carry  out  blindly  his  instructions  whatever 
they  might  be.  It  was  now  resolved  to  strike  a  mortal 
blow,  not  only  at  the  Emperor  but  at  the  whole  Imperial 
Family,  and  the  newly  formed  scheme  for  its  atrocious 
boldness  can  only  be  compared  with  the  famous  Gunpow- 
der Plot  in  England.  It  was  determined  to  blow  up  that 
part  of  the  Winter  Palace  in  which  the  rooms  of  the  Em- 
peror are  situated,  the  explosion  to  take  place  directly 
under  the  large  dining  saloon,  and  to  be  fired  at  a  time 
when  the  Emperor,  his  family  and  guests  were  already 
seated  at  the  table.  Wild  as  the  attempt  may  appear, 
the  preparations  for  its  execution  were  carried  on  w  ch 


116 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  117 

greater  success  than  many  might  suppose  to  be  possible, 
owing  to  the  habitual  laxity  with  which  the  officials  Avhose 
special  charge  it  was  to  guard  the  palace,  performed  their 
duties.  In  the  course  of  subsequent  investigations  it 
came  out  that  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  persons, 
supposed  to  be  connected  with  the  lackeys  and  servants 
of  the  palace,  had  for  years  been  living  in  the  building  un- 
provided with  any  kind  of  passport  and  free  from  all  sur- 
veillance. Equally  lax  was  the  watch  kept  over  the  nu- 
merous workmen  almost  constantly  employed  in  repairing 
one  or  another  portion  of  the  palace.  Even  to  the  pres- 
ent day  it  is  not  positively  known  who  placed  the  in- 
fernal machine  in  the  vault  where  some  carpenters  and 
bricklayers  were  engaged  working.  Against  those  ar- 
rested no  sufficient  evidence  could  be  brought.  They 
were  evidently  mere  decoys,  and  the  real  criminal,  the 
chief  carpenter,  succeeded  in  escaping.  On  February 
17,  1880,  a  dinner  party  took  place  at  the  palace,  the 
principal  guests  being  the  Prince  of  Bulgaria  and  the 
Duchess  of  Edinburgh.  The  dinner  was  fixed  for  six 
o'clock,  but  the  Emperor  remained  in  his  private  room  a 
few  minutes,  not  more  than  five,  talking  with  the  Prince, 
and  to  this  unintended  delay  must  be  attributed  the  es- 
cape of  the  Emperor  and  his  guests.  They  had  scarcely 
crossed  the  threshold  of  the  room  when  a  terrible  crash 
was  heard,  a  large  hole  was  torn  in  the  floor  immediately 
in  front  of  the  Emperor,  huge  candelabras  were  thrown 
from  the  table  and  lustres  torn  out  of  the  wall,  while  the 
whole  place  was  covered  with  clouds  of  dust,  masses  of 
broken  glass,  and  fragments  of  shattered  furniture.  At 
the  same  moment  the  gas  throughout  the  palace  was  ex- 
tinguished. As  soon  as  lights  could  be  brought,  mes- 
sengers were  sent  to  make  enquiries  about  the  Empress, 
who  was  lying  ill  in  a  distant  room  of  the  palace,  and 
8 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  119 

who,  happily,  had  not  in  any  way  been  injured,  a  minute 
search  was  set  on  foot  and  the  extent  of  the  catastrophe 
soon  became  known.  In  the  vaulted  room,  where  the  in- 
fernal clock-machine  had  been  placed,  were  a  number  of 
soldiers  belonging  to  the  Finland  Regiment  and  waiting 
their  turn  to  go  on  duty  in  the  palace.  Eight  of  these  were 
instantly  killed  and  forty-five  were  terribly  wounded.  The 
clock  had  been  mounted  so  as  to  explode  precisely  at  five 
minutes  past  six,  by  which  time  it  was  expected  the  Empe- 
ror and  the  others  would  have  taken  their  places  at  the  table. 

The  Czarevitch  and  the  Grand  Duke  Vladimir  were 
the  first  to  reach  the  guard-room  after  the  explosion  in 
the  palace,  arriving  there  just  as  the  officers,  fearing  dan- 
ger to  the  Emperor,  were  about  to  lead  the  remaining 
sentinels  to  the  Imperial  apartments.  The  Grand  Duke 
Vladimir  hastened  to  the  barracks  to  give  the  alarm, 
and  brought  back  the  Preobrajensky  Guards  to  the  pal- 
ace. It  is  said  that  at  the  moment  of  the  explosion 
bombs  were  thrown  in  the  streets  outside  the  palace, 
some  of  which  exploded  under  a  private  carriage,  but 
the  facts  are,  the  cavalry,  telegraphed  for  as  soon  as  the 
alarm  was  given,  galloped  off  in  such  haste  that  many  of 
their  cartridges  were  jerked  out  of  their  cartouche  cases, 
and  the  streets  were  strewn  with  these  explosives,  which, 
of  course,  went  off  under  the  wheels  of  passing  vehicles, 
the  occupants  of  which  were  arrested  by  the  police  and 
bystanders  who  were  ignorant  of  what  had  really  oc- 
curred . 

In  striking  contrast  with  the  domestic  treachery  which 
encompassed  the  Czar  in  his  palace  is  the  fidelity 
of  the  Finnish  soldiers  who  formed  his  body-guard, 
who,  through  all  political  ordeals  and  insurrectionary 
conflicts  never  once  faltered  in  allegiance  to  their 
•Sovereign.  Horribly  sudden  as  the  whole  mur- 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

derous  surprise  was,  not  one  of  the  injured  men 
would  leave  his  post  until  their  own  officer  in  charge, 
who  was  himself  wounded,  came  to  give  the  word  of 
command. 

The  Czar  is  said  to  have  been  very  much  affected  ;  so 
much  so  as  at  one  time  almost  to  have  lost  his  self-com- 
mand. When,  however,  Lord  Dufferin  called  to  con- 
gratulate him  upon  his  escape,  the  Emperor  remarked 
that  it  was  to  Divine  Providence  he  stood  indebted,  and 
that  God  having  mercifully  delivered  him  twice  from 
very  imminent  peril,  he  was  content  to  trust  his  life  for 
the  future  to  His  protecting  hand.  The  Duchess  of  Ed- 
inburgh displayed  great  fortitude  and  presence  of  mind 
in  the  trying  crisis.  This  was  the  more  noticeable 
from  the  fact  that  Her  Imperial  Highness  was  much  af- 
fected on  the  occasion  of  Solovieffs  attempt,  being  then 
in  a  delicate  state  of  health. 

After  the  explosion  the  Emperor  left  the  Winter  Pal- 
ace, and  went  under  escort  of  thirty  Cossacks  to  the  old 
Paul  Palace,  where  he  slept.  Next  day,  on  his  way  to 
attend  the  Te  Deum  in  the  Imperial  Chapel  in  the  pal- 
ace, he  stopped  before  the  officers  of  the  Finnish  Regi- 
ment, and  thanked  the  colonel  for  the  manner  in  which 
the  soldiers  had  fulfilled  their  duty,  referring  to  the  fact 
that  all  the  sentinels  remained  at  their  posts,  notwith- 
standing that  a  company  of  the  Preobrajensky  Regiment 
had  arrived  to  relieve  them. 

On  Friday  following  the  soldiers  of  the  Finnish  Guards 
who  were  killed  by  the  explosion  were  interred  with  great 
solemnity,  the  funeral  being  attended  by  the  Grand  Duke 
Constantine  and  many  generals  and  staff  officers.  The 
coffins  were  borne  to  the  grave  by  officers,  and  there  was 
an  immense  crowd  of  spectators.  General  Gourko,  in 
an  order  to  the  troops  announcing  the  interment  of  their 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


121 


122  BUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

comrades,  said  :  "  May  the  honorable  conduct  of  the  men 
who  were  wounded  by  the  explosion  convince  the  insane 
criminals  who  planned  the  attempt  that  neither  their  en- 
deavors to  bribe  the  soldiers  nor  the  fear  of  "death  itself 
can  shake  the  loyalty  of  the  troops."  The  Emperor  and 
the  Czarevitch  attended  the  funeral  ceremony  celebrated 
in  the  barracks  previous  to  the  starting  of  the  procession 
for  the  place  of  interment,  and  afterward  visited  the 
wounded  men  in  the  hospital.  It  is  a  remarkable  coinci- 
dence that  it  was  this  same  Finnish  regiment  which,  in 
1825,  was  suddenly  called  to  the  Winter  Palace  to  over- 
awe and  supercede  the  Grenadiers,  whose  loyalty  was 
doubted  ;  and  it  was  to  them  that  Alexander,  then  only  a 
child  of  seven,  was  entrusted  by  his  father  Nicholas. 
Taking  the  little  Grand  Duke  Alexander  by  the  hand,  he 
said,  "I  confide  my  son  to  your  care;  it  will  be  your 
duty  to  defend  his  life."  The  rough  Finns,  it  is  said, 
were  moved  to  tears.  They  took  up  the  child  in  their 
arms,  passed  him  from  rank  to  rank,  and  swore  to  form 
a  rampart  of  their  bodies  behind  which  he  should  be  safe. 
The  building  where  the  explosion  took  place,  which  is 
the  largest  and  finest  palace  in  the  world,  is  the  usual  win- 
ter residence  of  the  Czar  and  his  Court.  On  one  side  it 
fronts  on  the  river  Neva,  while  on  the  other  there  is  a  large 
open  space  called  the  Palace  Square,  in  which  stands 
Alexander's  Column,  a  monolith  of  red  granite  eighty 
feet  high.  On  the  right  of  the  palace  is  Peter's  Square, 
which  contains  the  celebrated  statue  of  Peter  the  Great, 
and  the  Field  of  Mars,  a  parade  ground  large  enough  for 
40,000  men  to  manoeuvre  in.  On  the  east  side  of  the 
palace,  arid  connected  with  it  by  a  covered  way,  is 
the  Empress  Catharine's  Hermitage,  now  a  museum. 
The  Nevski  Perspective  is  in  front  of  the  Admiralty 
and  close  to  the  Imperial  Palace,  which,  after  being 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA .  123 

burnt  down  in  1837,  was  rebuilt  in  six  months  in  the 
middle  of  winter  by  order  of  the  Emperor  Nicho- 
las. Each  story  was  dried  with  immense  fires  as  soon  as 
erected,  and  several  thousand  workmen  met  with  their 
death  during  the  rebuilding,  in  consequence  of  the  alter- 
nate exposure  to  the  excessive  heat  while  at  work  in  the 
apartments,  and  the  rigorous  temperature  outside.  The 
palace,  which  is  painted  a  brick  red,  is  four  stories 
high,  or  about  eighty  feet.  The  frontage  is  445  feet  in 
length,  and  the  breadth  350  feet.  The  principal  en- 
trance is  from  the  Neva,  and  leads  by  a  magnificent 
flight  of  marble  steps  to  the  State  Apartments  of  the 
palace.  A  gateway  in  the  centre  of  the  building,  facing 
Alexander's  Column,  opens  into  -a  large  court.  The  in- 
terior is  most  gorgeous,  suites  of  splendid  halls  being 
filled  with  marble,  malachite  vases,  and  pictures  ;  whilst 
the  Crown  and  other  jewels  are  of  almost  inestimable 
value.  The  Czar  has  his  apartments  on  the  first  floor 
and  in  the  corner  of  the  Winter  Palace  that  overlooks  the 
Neva  and  the  Admiralty.  The  Empress  inhabits  the 
other  corner,  and  between  the  two  is  the  family  dining- 
room.  At  one  and  six  o'clock  the  Czar,  the  Czarina, 
and  the  Grand  Dukes  Alexis,  Sergius,  and  Paul  formerly 
met  for  breakfast  and  dinner.  The  Czarevitch  and  the 
Grand  Duke  Vladimir,  who  are  both  married,  have 
also  general  invitations  to  join  the  Imperial  circle ;  but 
the  other  members  of  the  family  wait  until  they  are 
bidden.  Six  covers  are  always  laid,  and  the  service 
is  performed  by  three  French  maitres  d 'hotel ',  who 
relieve  each  other  every  fortnight.  The  arrangement 
of  the  apartments  is  similar  to  that  of  Versailles, 
there  being  a  multitude  of  small  rooms,  and  an  im- 
mense number  of  civil  and  military  officials  having 
their  abode  here  in  separate  suites  of  rooms.  The 


124  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

guards'  room,  beneath  which  the  charge  of  dynamite  was 
deposited,  is  on  the  ground  floor,  and  was  formerly  the 
sleeping  apartment  of  the  Grand  Duke  Nicholas  when  a 
child. 

The  indignation  excited  by  a  crime  that  involved  the 
lives  of  so  many  who,  even  adopting  the  views  of  its  per- 
petrators, were  completely  innocent,  was  greatly  in- 
creased in  consequence  of  the  general  belief  that  on  the 
approaching  19th  of  February  an  imperial  manifesto 
would  be  issued,  conferring  political  rights  on  Russian 
subjects  more  in  accordance  with  the  ideas  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  than  those  hitherto  accorded.  That  all 
this  was  more  than  mere  rumor,  is  certain  from  papers 
known  to  have  been  left  by  the  late  Emperor,  and  in  ac- 
cordance with  which  tk&zemstra,  or  provincial  assemblies, 
would  have  been  granted  representative  rights  which 
they  have  long  petitioned  for  but  never  obtained.  We 
can  scarcely  wonder  that  all  such  constitutional  reforms 
were  abandoned,  and  it  speaks  much  in  favor  of  the  late 
Emperor,  that  even  after  February  17,  he  still  had  suffi- 
cient nerve  and  belief  in  the  future  of  Russia,  to 
refuse  to  adopt  measures  of  an  exclusively  repressive 
and  retrograde  character.  On  the  25th  of  February  a  min- 
isterial committee  "  for  the  preservation  of  Imperial  order 
and  public  safety,"  was  established  under  the  presidency 
of  Count  Loris  Melikoff,  which  became  an  order  in  its 
enforcement  little  less  than  terrorism.  A  night  patrol 
was  organized  in  St.  Petersburg  which  summarily  ar- 
rested every  crowd,  numbering  more  than  five  persons, 
caught  upon  the  streets  after  ten  o'clock  at  night,  and 
single  individuals  were  required  to  have  their  passports 
constantly  with  them  if  they  appeared  away  from  their 
homes  after  dark.  But  this  was  not  the  most  serious  re- 
striction placed  upon  the  personal  liberty  of  citizens 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


12* 


throughout  Russia.  The  order  became  finally  the  means 
which  malicious  persons  utilized  to  destroy  their  enemies. 
It  was  only  necessary  to  report,  under  oath,  the  active 


THE  NIGHT  PATROL  IN  ST.  PFTERSBURG. 

sympathy  of  any  person  with  the  Nihilists  to  secure  their 
imprisonment,  and  execution  or  transportation  to  Siberia. 
Thus  a  cowardly  criminal  could  go  before  the  Third  Sec- 


126  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXD 

tion  chief  and  make  oath  that  he  had  detected  his  neigh- 
bor in  the  act  of  circulating  revolutionary  papers,  or  com- 
mitting some  other  prohibited  act,  and  upon  this  infor- 
mation the  unfortunate,  and  perhaps  innocent  person, 
would  be  summarily  arrested  and  taken  off  to  the  Fortress 
prison.  Hundreds  of  instances  occurred  in  which  blame- 
less men  were  torn  from  their  families  in  the  middle  of 
the  night,  and  without  being  permitted  to  say  even  good- 
bye to  their  wives  or  children,  were  ruthlessly  carried  to 
that  dreadful  political  prison  from  which  they  either 
never  departed  alive  or  were  sent  across  the  desert  wilds 
of  Siberia  to  spend  the  remainder  of  their  wretched  lives 
in  exile. 

In  1878  no  less  than  one  hundred  and  ninety-three 
persons  were  brought  to  trial  at  one  time,  charged 
with  various  grades  of  treason  and  conspiracy  against  the 
Government.  Among  the  prisoners  who  were  condemned 
was  a  spirited  and  intelligent  man  named  Muishkin,  who 
was  once  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  proprietor  of  a  print- 
ing-office from  which  forbidden  books  were  issued.  In 
1875  he  went  to  the  distant  forests  of  East  Siberia  with 
the  intention  of  freeing  the  famous  thinker  and  critic, 
Tchernieshevski,  who  had  been  in  penal  servitude  for 
twelve  years  for  his  connection  with  a  secret  society,  but 
he  was  unsuccessful.  His  speech  before  the  tribunal 
brought  tears  to  some,  caused  others  to  turn  pale,  to 
tremble,  or  to  become  furious.  He  was  condemned  to 
twenty  years'  penal  servitude  at  the  Central  Prison  at 
Kharkov.  Single-handed,  and  with  no  other  implement 
than  his  hands,  this  gigantic  minded  man  began  to  make 
an  underground  passage  in  his  prison  to  effect  his  escape. 
He  had  nearly  finished  the  tunnel  when  it  was  discovered  ; 
he  was  unmercifully  lashed  then,  and,  like  many  other 
Russian  political  prisoners,  he  has  since  become  mad 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


127 


12$  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

from  the  barbarous  treatment  he  received.     Muishkin's 
insanity  dates  from  October,  1880. 

But  condemnations  and  repressive  measures  in  no  wise 
deterred  the  Nihilists,  who,  in  fact,  became  bolder  and 
more  revengeful.  In  the  meantime  the  Government  was 
active  in  bringing  to  punishment  those  arrested  for  treas- 
onable crimes.  In  November,  1880,  sixteen  Nihilists  of 
both  sexes  were  arraigned  for  treason  in  St.  Petersburg. 
The  principal  prisoner  was  Kviatkovski,  who  was  accused 
of  contributing  to  the  revolutionary  organ  Will  of  the 
People,  and  also  of  being  connected  with  the  conspiracy 
to  blow  up  the  Winter  Palace.  Others  were  charged 
with  complicity  in  the  murder  of  Prince  Krapotkin,  in 
Solovieff's  attempted  assassination  of  the  Czar ;  others 
in  the  attempt  to  blow  up  the  Imperial  train  at  Moscow  ; 
two  in  the  attempts  at  Alexandrovolsk  and  Odessa  to 
assassinate  Imperial  officers,  and  two  others  of  being 
connected  with  secret  printing  presses.  Several  of  the 
prisoners  were  arrested  on  their  own  confession,  so  brave 
and  fanatically  patriotic  to  their  purposes  were  some  of 
the  Nilhists.  Upon  this  trial  it  was  proved  that  a  car- 
penter named  Stephen  Chalturen,  or  Halturin,  who  form- 
erly lodged  in  the  basement  of  the  Winter  Palace,  was 
the  author  and  most  active  agent  in  the  palace  explosion. 
Some  of  these  prisoners  were  uncommonly  well  dressed 
and  presented  a  generally  intelligent  appearance.  Kviat- 
kovski and  Presniakov  were  convicted  and  executed  in 
the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  on  the  5th  of  No- 
vember, 1880.  The  public  were  rigidly  excluded  from  the 
scene  of  execution,  and  but  one  foreign  correspondent  was 
permitted  to  be  present.  Early  in  the  morning  the  two 
prisoners  were  taken  from  their  cells,  and  as  usual  were 
driven  to  the  scaffold  in  a  cart,  riding  with  their  backs  to 
kerses,  and  bearing  a  placard  with  the  inscription 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


"  State  Criminal  "  on  their  breasts.  At  the  glacis  •£  the 
fortress  where  the  scaffold  had  been  erected  the  prisoners 
descended  and  mounted  the  scaffold  barefooted,  where 


MDMB.  OLGA  NATHANSON.  STEPHEN  SHIRAIEV.  MDLLE.  EUGENIA  FIGNEB. 

PORTRAITS  OF  LEADING  NIHILISTS. 

they  were  clad  in  the  long  penitential  shirt  of  condemned 
parricides  and  were  pinioned  to  two  upright  posts 


130  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

their  sentence  was  read  out  to  them.  This  over,  a 
priest  came  forward  with  a  cross,  which  both  kissed,  and 
then  kissed  one  another,  while  he  recited  some  prayers. 
The  executioner  then  adjusted  the  rope,  and  raising  the 
condemned  men  high  in  the  air  caused  their  speedy  strang- 
ulation. The  ground  was  kept  by  a  detachment  of  the 
Finland  Guard,  who  were  on  duty  in  the  Winter  Palace 
on  the  night  of  the  explosion. 

Five  others  of  those  condemned  at  the  same  trial,  No- 
vember 10th,  were  Kviatkovski,  Shiraiev,  Mdlles.  Fig- 
ner,  Ivanova,  and  Griasnova,  whose  portraits  are  given. 
Alexander  Kviatkovski,  of  noble  descent,  the  most  im- 
portant of  the  prisoners,  was  arrested  by  the  St.  Peters- 
burg police  in  December,  1879,  at  the  same  time  as 
Mdlle.  Figner.  Three  mines  ready  for  explosion,  but  in 
dissected  pieces,  were  found  in  their  lodging,  as  well  as 
dynamite  and  fulminate,  with  revolvers,  poison,  and  the 
plan  of  the  Winter  Palace,  in  which,  later  on,  the  explo- 
sion took  place. 

The  evidence  which  came  out  at  this  trial  disclosed 
that  Kviatkovski,  who  headed  the  Terrorist  party,  was 
one  of  those  concerned  in  the  explosion  of  the  Winter 
Palace  on  April  14,  1880,  when  eleven  men  were  killed 
and  sixty-six  were  wounded  ;  that  he  was  an  indirect 
party  to  the  attempt  on  the  Emperor's  life  by  Solovieff 
on  April  2,  1879  ;  and  that  he  took  part  in  the  secret 
congress  of  the  Terrorists  at  Lipetsk,  in  1879,  where  a 
serfes  of  attempts  on  the  Emperor's  life  were  decided 
upon,  in  addition  to  other  less  well-known  offences. 

Mdlle.  Figner,  daughter  of  a  high  Russian  official, 
was  twenty-two  years  old.  She  was  acquitted  of  any 
participation  in  the  Winter  Palace  conspiracy,  but 
was  condemned  to  fifteen  years'  penal  servitude  on 
the  charge  of  her  connection  with  the  Terroristic  party, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  131 


LEO  HART  MANN. 


132  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

and  for  publishing  forbidden  works.  The  Court,  pitying 
her  youth,  begged  of  the  Czarevitch  to  change  her  sen- 
tence into  transportation  to  Eastern  Siberia,  where  her 
sister  was  already  in  exile.  Mdlle.  Figner  had  been  a 
medical  student,  and  she  also  studied  music  at  the  Con- 
servatoire, St.  Petersburg.  Her  voice  is  said  to  be  one 
of  the  most  beautiful  in  Europe. 

Shiraiev,  of  a  peasant  family,  had  been  studying  in  a 
veterinary  institute.  He  lived  some  time  in  London  and 
in  Paris,  and  on  his  return  to  Russia,  in  1879,  he  joined 
the  Terrorist  party,  and  with  Hartmann  prepared  dyna- 
mite for  mines.  He  took  part  in  the  secret  congress, 
and  with  Hartmann  again  was  a  party  in  the  Moscow  ex- 
plosion, December  1,  1879.  He  directed  the  digging  of 
mines  near  Odessa  and  Alexandrovska  after  this,  and 
shortly  after  was  arrested  by  the  police  at  St.  Petersburg. 
Condemned  to  be  hung,  his  sentence  was  remitted  into 
one  of  penal  servitude  for  life. 

Mdlle.  Ivanova,  daughter  of  a  major,  is  the  heroine  of 
one  of  the  most  extraordinary  transactions  for  a  young 
lady  of  her  age  (then  only  twenty-two  years).  When 
the  secret  printing  office  of  the  Terrorist  organ  N~arod- 
naia  Volia  (People's  Will)  was  discovered,  she,  with 
Mdlle.  Griasnova  and  three  men,  revolvers  in  hand,  kept 
the  police  at  bay  for  three  hours,  firing  more  than  one 
hundred  shots.  The  gendarmes  answered  by  volleys  at 
both  the  windows  and  the  doors,  and  only  succeeded  in 
overcoming  the  party  when  their  stock  of  cartridges  was 
exhausted.  One  of  the  printers,  an  unknown  person, 
blew  out  his  brains  on  seeing  the  inevitable  end,  the  four 
others  surrendered.  Mdlle.  Ivanova' s  hands  and  legs 
were  tied  with  ropes,  and  she  was  thrown  on  the  ground  ; 
in  this  state  she  reproached  her  comrades  for  lack  of  en- 
ergy in  seif-defense.  The  gendarme  officer,  hearing 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  133 

that,  struck  her  in  the  face  with  the  butt  end  of  his  re- 
volver, and  kicked  her  severely.  She  complained  of  the 
man — then  a  witness  against  her — hefore  the  court  mar- 
tial, but  the  officer,  though  he  could  not  deny  the  fact, 
disregarded  her  words. 

The  two  printers,  Ivanova  and  Griasnova,  were  con- 
demned to  fifteen  years  penal  servitude,  but  at  the  solic- 
itation of  the  court-martial,  the  heir  apparent  changed 
the  sentence  of  the  former  to  four  years  penal  servitude, 
and  transportation  to  Siberia  for  the  latter.  Among 
others,  Papov,  son  of  a  priest,  was  convicted  about  the 
same  time  by  a  court-martial  held  at  Kiev,  and  sen- 
tenced to  be  hung.  He  stood  at  the  head  of  that  party 
of  Socialist  propagandists  whose  distinguishing  feature 
is  that  they  do  not  practice  any  illegal  measures  either 
for  self-defense  or  for  propagandism.  His  bold  and 
straightforward  speech  before  the  Court  was  the  cause  of 
his  condemnation  to  death,  but  his  sentence  was  subse- 
quently altered  by  the  Emperor  into  penal  servitude  for 
life. 

Dr.  Weimar,  whose  trial  at  St.  Petersburg  in  the  spring 
of  1880  caused  such  a  sensation  throughout  Europe,  was 
condemned  to  penal  servitude  at  the  same  time  as  Mrs. 
Olga  Nathanson.  Dr.  Weimar  was  accused  of  helping 
two  other  Nihilists,  Mirski  and  Solovieff,  in  their  crim- 
inal designs.  He  gave  his  horse  to  Mirski  for  his  attempt 
on  the  life  of  Drenteln,  Chief  of  the  Third  Section  of 
the  Emperor's  Chancellery,  and  bought  the  revolver  for 
Solovieff.  In  the  month  of  October  Olga  Nathanson  be- 
came mad  in  the  fortress  of  St.  Petersburg,  before  she 
could  be  sent  to  Siberia.  The  real  cause  of  her  insanity, 
it  is  alleged,  lies  in  the  fact  that  she,  with  three  other 
young  friends,  was  the  subject  of  criminal  violence  on 
the  part  of  the  prison  officials. 


134  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

The  next  attempt  at  assassination  occurred  directly 
after  the  adoption  of  the  repression  measures  of  1880, 
when  the  Armenian  General  Loris  Melikoff  was  appointed 
Chief  of  the  Executive,  with  unlimited  powers,  and  had 
inaugurated  a  more  rigid  policy  than  even  his  predeces- 
sors. The  attack  was,  no  doubt,  directly  attributable  to 
the  execution  of  a  sub-lieutenant  named  Donbrovin,  which 


GENERAL  LORIS  MELIKOFF. 


occurred  at  St.  Petersburg,  and  upon  which  occasion  Gen- 
eral Gourko  issued  an  order  to  the  troops  in  which 
he  cited  the  example  of  Donbrovin  as  a  proof  that  the 
aim  of  the  revolutionists  was  to  make  the  military  their 
accomplices.  General  Melikoff  warmly  approved  this 
accusation  and  made  many  threats,  declaring  his  purpose 
to  deal  with  the  Nihilists  despotically,  and  indeed  he 
did  bring  many  of  the  revolutionists  to  judgment. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


135 


Many  messages,  containing  desperate  threats,  were 
sent  to  Melikoff,  which  caused  that  astute  official  to  ob- 
serve special  care,  but  a  determined  fellow  whose  name 


I  could  not  find  in  the  records,  caught  sight  of  Gen- 
eral Melikoff  as  he  was  leaving  his  carriage  to  enter 
the  Third  Section,  and  made  a  vicious  attempt  to  shoot 
him,  discharging  a  pistol  twice  at  the  General  but  with- 
out effect.  The  assassin  was  arrested  and  being  brought 


136  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

to  trial  was  convicted  and  publicly  executed.  The  pris- 
oner was  enveloped  with  a  black  shroud,  only  the  face 
being  exposed,  and,  seated  upon  a  peculiar  kind  of  a 
chair  placed  on  a  box  wagon  with  the  back  toward  the 
horses,  he  was  driven  slowly  through  the  streets,  pre- 
ceded and  followed  by  mounted  guards.  The  engraving, 
besides  giving  a  portrait  of  General  Melikoff's  assailant, 
shows  the  method  by  which  prisoners  condemned  to 
death  are  conducted  to  the  place  of  execution. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  culmination  of  that  desperate,  unreasonable  ven- 
geance which  animated  the  Russian  Nihilists  was  reached 
on  the  13th  of  March,  1881,  when  the  Czar  Alexander  II., 
who  deserved  little  but  praise  from  his  countrymen,  and 
whose  name  must  ever  be  associated  with  the  greatest  re- 
forms ever  projected  by  a  Russian  ruler,  was  struck 
down,  after  five  previous  attempts,  in  a  horrible  death. 
We  can  only  measure  the  full  terribleness  of  that  most 
atrocious  act,  by  calling  to  mind  the  agony  we  ourselves 
suffered  in  the  assassination  of  our  honored  and  chosen 
rulers,  Lincoln  and  Garfield.  Autocrat  though  he  was, 
Alexander  II.  possessed  such  qualities  of  heart  and  mind 
as  made  him  very  dear  to  the  masses  of  his  subjects. 
Unfortunately  he  was  cradled  in  adversity  and  brought 
up  through  circumstances  which  enforced  his  familiarity 
with  conspiracy. 

Born  April  29,  1818,  Alexander  was  only  seven  years 
of  age  when  the  famous  conspiracy  of  the  "  Decem- 
brists " — Russia's  first  open  cry  for  a  constitution — broke 
out  against  his  father  on  his  accession  to  the  throne, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


137 


138  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

which  rooted  in  him  a  horror  of  reform  and  made  his 
reign  one  continuous  repression  of  liberty  and  speech. 
Alexander  was  provided  with  a  tutor  who  inspired  him 
with  a  love  for  literature  and  romance,  but  he  was  not  per- 
mitted to  follow  this  gratifying  and  peaceful  inclination. 
Nicholas,  of  iron  will,  compelled  him  to  abandon  every 
pursuit  that  promised  contentment,  and  at  seventeen 
Alexander  became  his  father's  Aid-de-Camp  and  com- 
mandant of  the  Lancers'  Guard.  But  the  boy  Prince 
Imperial  could  not  cultivate  a  love  for  the  military,  and 
after  a  short  service  so  weary  of  spirit  did  he  become 
that  his  father,  much  against  his  will,  gave  Alexander  a 
vacation,  during  which  he  visited  Germany  and  there 
wooed  and  won  the  Princess  .Maria  of  Hesse  Darmstadt — 
a  veritable  love-match.  Upon  his  return  to  Russia  with 
his  young  and  loving  bride,  Alexander  interested  himself 
in  encouraging  education  and  founded  a  chair  of  Finnish 
literature.  In  1850  he  visited  Southern  Russia,  where  af- 
ter campaigning  for  two  months  in  the  Caucasus,  upon 
Woronzow's  recommendation,  the  order  of  St.  George  was 
conferred  upon  him.  But  under  Nicholas  all  persons,  even 
heirs  to  the  throne,  were  inconsequential  unless  they  had 
won  honors  upon  the  field  of  battle  or  by  diplomacy  re- 
dounding to  his  advantage.  Thus, beyond  certain  disagree- 
ments with  the  "  Old  Russian  "  party,  whose  idol  was 
his  younger  brother  Constantine,  and  a  decided  though 
silent  disapproval  of  his  father's  policy  in  bringing  on  the 
Crimean  war,  there  was  little  to  observe  in  the  Czare- 
vitch's unassuming  life  until  the  fateful  day  when  defeat 
and  disappointment  drove  his  father  to  seek  surcease  in 
death.  In  his  dying  moments,  March  2,  1855,  Nicholas 
called  Alexander  to  his  bedside,  and  taking  his  hand, 
said:  "My  son,  I  now  bestow  upon  you  the  crown  of 
Russia,  in  succession  to  your  dying  father ;  you  will,  I 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


139 


140  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

am  sorry  to  say,  find  the  burden  heavy,"  and  then  ex- 
pired. 

How  Alexander  II.  took  up  the  scepter  of  Government 
and  wielded  it  for  the  benefit  of  his  subjects  has  already 
been  told,  and  now  remains  the  task  of  describing  how, 
after  several  diabolical  attempts,  he  was  at  last  stricken 
down  by  the  fell  hand  of  assassination  and  left  the  whole 
civilized  world  weeping  beside  his  bier. 

It  was  the  custom  of  the  Czar  to  take  mid-day  lunch 
every  Sunday  with  his  sister  in  the  Michael  Palace,  which 
stands  not  far  from  the  center  of  St.  Petersburg,  in  a  con- 
siderable forest  of  trees  surrounded  by  a  high  wall.  This 
custom  being  well  known,  a  body  of  Nihilists  set  about  to 
compass  his  assassination  in  the  following  manner  : 

Two  of  the  conspirators  engaged  a  cellar-room  under 
a  large,  lead  colored,  four-story  building  which  stands  on 
the  corner  of  Little  Garden  street  and  the  Nevski  Pros- 
pekt,  and  immediately  facing  the  large  bronze  statue  of 
Catharine  II.  This  place  was  chosen  because  there  are 
only  two  streets  leading  from  Michael  Palace,  viz.  : 
Little  Garden  street  from  the  east,  and  an  exit  south 
into  a  narrow  street  running  parallel  with  the  Catharine 
Canal.  As  the  former  was  generally  used  by  the  Czar, 
because  of  its  smooth  pavement,  it  was  here  that  the 
conspirators  decided  to  make  most  ample  preparations  to 
accomplish  their  deadly  purpose. 

The  cellar-room  engaged  was  used  for  a  considerable 
time  as  a  milk  and  cheese  depot,  the  better  to  enable  the 
assassins  to  disguise  their  real  occupation.  During  this 
time  they  excavated  a  tunnel  entirely  across  the  street  and 
placed  therein  the  enormous  charge  of  sixty  pounds  of 
dynamite,  which  was  connected  by  an  electric  wire,  so  that 
the  mine  could  be  discharged  at  any  instant.  It  is  de- 
clared by  those  familiar  with  the  destructiveness  of  this 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBEKIA. 


141 


most  powerful  explosive,  that  had  the  mine  been  ex- 
ploded it  would  have  razed  fully  one-half  of  the  entire 
city  and  killed  thousands  of  people. 

It  is  astonishing  how  great  a  work  was  carried  on  in 


so  central  a  place  without  detection,  particularly  since 
the  fact  is  known  that  General  Melikoff  received  several 
letters  notifying  him  that  the  end  of  the  Czar  Alexander 
was  near  at  hand,  and  also  that  his  assassination  would 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


ftXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

be  accomplished  on  the  very  day  it  was  brought  about. 
This  latter  information  Melikoff  communicated  to  Alex- 
ander and  begged  of  him  not  to  go  out  on  that  day, 
but  such  threats  had  become  too  common  for  this  one  to 
be  specially  observed. 

The  dynamite  mine  being  completed  and  ready  for  its 
deadly  work,  which  it  was  expected  to  perform  on  Sun- 
day afternoon,  March  13th,  1881,  the  assassins  posted  a 
watch  to  give  information  when  the  Czar  should  come 
driving  from  the  Michael  Palace  toward  the  Nevski  Pros- 
pekt.  But  to  make  their  purpose  more  certain,  although 
it  was  only  on  extremely  rare  occasions  that  the  Emperor 
ever  left  the  palace  by  the  Catharine  Canal  street,  yet  in 
view  of  the  possibility  that  on  this  occasion  he  might  do 
so,  another  party  of  Nihilists  were  stationed  along  this 
street,  two  of  them  taking  their  positions  near  the  gate. 
These  two  were  each  provided  with  Orsiui  bombs — glass 
balls  the  size  of  a  hen's  egg,  loaded  with  dynamite — while 
two  others  stood  on  the  ice  in  the  canal,  also  having 
bombs  in  their  pockets,  while  a  woman,  Sophia  Perofs- 
kaja,  stood  at  the  corner  of  the  palace  grounds  from 
whence,  by  waving  a  handkerchief,  she  could  signal  the 
four  conspirators  if  the  Czar  should  leave  the  palace  by 
Little  Garden  street. 

Shortly  before  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  his  Maj- 
esty drove  out  of  the  palace  grounds  by  way  of  the 
canal,  but  scarcely  had  he  proceeded  a  rod  from  the  gate 
when  one  of  the  conspirators  threw  a  bomb  which  burst 
so  far  to  the  rear  of  the  carriage  that  its  force  was  ex- 
pended on  two  of  the  Cossack  guards,  who  were  instantly 
killed,  together  with  their  horses,  while  the  rear  of  the 
Imperial  carriage  was  shattered,  but  the  Czar  received  no 
injury. 

The  report  was  so  great  that  many  person*  were  iinme- 


144 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


diately  attracted  to  the  spot.  The  Czar  stepped  out  of 
the  carriage,  though  his  coachman  urged  him  to  resume 
his  seat,  and  advanced  toward  Colonel  Dvorketsky,  Chief 
of  Police,  who  as  usual,  was  following  behindiuasledg*, 


and  who  had  already  seized  the  culprit,  who  was  struggling 
violently  with  the  Colonel  and  trying  to  use  a  pistol  and 
dagger.  Assistance  was  at  hand,  however,  and  the  as- 
sassin was  soon  disarmed  ;  he  proved  to  be  n young  student 
named  Rlsakoff,  belonging  to  the  Institute  of  Mining 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA 


145 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  147 

Engineers.  A  moment  after,  several  officers  congratu- 
lated the  Czar  upon  his  marvellous  escape,  to  whose  kind 
words  he  replied:  "Give  God  the  praise,"  and  then 
piously  crossing  himself,  he  gave  directions  concerning 
the  care  of  the  wounded  and  started,  on  foot,  toward  the 
Winter  Palace.  He  had  taken  less  than  a  half-dozen  steps 
when  another  bomb  was  thrown  which  struck  and  burst 
at  his  feet  with  most  horrible  effect.  The  Czar  reeled 
and  fell  amid  a  cloud  of  smoke,  uttering  but  a  single  cry, 
"Help  !"  The  force  of  the  explosion  was  so  great  that 
all  the  glass  in  neighboring  houses  was  broken,  the  assas- 
sin,' Elnikoff,  was  himself  mortally  wounded,  and  a  boy 
was  instantly  killed,  while  eleven  of  the  Czar's  body- 
guard were  seriously  injured. 

Staff  Captain  Novikoff  was  the  first  to  reach  his  Ma- 
jesty, and  throwing  himself  weeping  at  the  Emperor's 
side,  exclaimed,  "  Good  God  !  What  has  happened  to 
your  Majesty?"  The  Emperor  remained  motionless,  and 
Novikoff,  with  the  assistance  of  some  sailors,  who  had 
hurried  to  the  spot,  lifted  him  up,  himself  holding  the 
wounded  Czar  around  the  body  and  breast,  while  the  sail- 
ors, without  letting  go  of  their  carbines,  held  the  feet. 
The  Emperor  then  attempted  to  lift  his  hand  to  his 
bleeding  brow,  murmuring  twice  the  word  "Cold." 
Novikoff  was  just  about  to  take  his  handkerchief  from 
his  pocket  to  bind  around  the  Emperor's  head,  when  the 
Grand  Duke  Michael  came  up  and,  bending  down  close 
to  the  Emperor's  face,  said,  "  How  do  you  feel?"  What 
his  Majesty  replied  it  was  difficult  to  catch.  The  Grand 
Duke  ordered  the  sailors  to  throw  down  their  carbines, 
and  then,  taking  a  cap  from  one  of  the  bystanders,  placed 
it  on  the  Emperor's  head.  They  then  began  to  move 
forward.  Novikoff  asked  the  Grand  Duke  whether  he 
would  allow  the  bearers  to  carry  the  'Emperor  into  the 


148 


RUSSIAN   Ml-IILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  149 

nearest  house  for  the  purpose  of  applying  bandages  to 
the  wounded  parts.  The  Emperor,  who  evidently  re- 
tained consciousness,  on  hearing  this,  whispered  in  broken 
language,  "Carry  to  palace,  there  die,"  and  some  few 
more  words  which  were  unintelligible. 

He  was  placed  in  Colonel  Dvorketsky's  sledge  and 
driven  directly  to  the  palace,  followed  by  an  immense 
crowd  of  sorrow-stricken  citizens,  many  of  whom  were 
crying  like  children  who  saw  before  them  the  mangled 
body  of  a  beloved  father. 

Upon  reaching  the  palace  the  Emperor  was  carried  up 
stairs  into  his  study,  where  a  bed  was  improvised,  upon 
which  he  was  laid  for  a  surgical  examination.  Six  of  the 
ablest  surgeons  in  St.  Petersburg  were  instantly  called, 
but  the  moment  they  saw  how  dreadful  were  his  wounds 
they  frankly  told  him  there  was  no  hope  for  recovery. 
Plis  Majesty  suffered  excruciating  agony  so  long  as  con- 
sciousness lasted  ;  both  his  legs  were  crushed  and  cut  in  a 
shocking  manner,  the  femoral  arteries  being  severed,  from 
which  alone  he  must  have  died  through  hemorrhage  had 
there  been  no  other  injuries  ;  but  .portions  of  glass  were 
driven  into  the  lower  parts  of  his  body,  while  there  were 
also  two  severe  cuts  in  his  face  from  which  large  pieces 
of  glass  were  extracted.  Seeing  that  death  was  inevita- 
ble, the  Court  Chaplain  administered  the  last  sacrament 
during  a  short  interval  of  consciousness  and,  while  the 
surgeons  were  considering  an  operation  on  the  Emperor, 
his  Majesty  surrendered  the  crown  forever,  at  3  :35  p.  M., 
one  hour  and  fifty  minutes  after  receiving  his  wounds. 
Surrounding  his  bedside  at  the  time  of  dissolution  was  a 
large  number  of  the  Imperial  family,  including  the  Czare- 
vitch and  Czarina,  who  manifested  such  grief  as  is  rarely 
witnessed. 

During  the  painful  suspense  which  followed  the  first 
10 


"RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


\ 


miK^,  v 

jBf! 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  151 

news  of  the  fatal  attack  on  the  Emperor  an  enormous 
crowd  of  people  gathered  in  Alexander  Square  fronting 
the  palace  and  gave  expression  to  a  sorrow  deep-felt  and 
inconsolable.  At  intervals  of  every  fifteen  minutes  a  flag 
was  displayed  from  the  palace  which  indicated  the  Em- 
peror's condition,  and  as  each  time  showed  him  to  be 
more  rapidly  sinking  the  crowd  became  more  demonstra- 
tive in  their  grief.  When  at  length  the  Emperor's  death 
was  announced  by  raising  the  Imperial  standard  at  half- 
mast,  the  assemblage  fell  upon  their  knees  and  became 
mute  in  silent  prayer. 

On  the  same  evening  of  the  Czar's  death  the  troops  in 
St.  Petersburg  and  members  of  the  Imperial  family,  ac- 
cording to  their  custsom,  kissed  the  Bible  and  then  took 
the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  new  Czar,  who  repaired  to 
the  Winter  Palace  Chapel  and  in  the  presence  of  the  State 
and  church  dignataries  placed  the  Imperial  Crown  of 
Russia  on  his  head  and  was  proclaimed  Emperor,  under 
the  title  of  Alexander  III. 

After  assuming  the  crown  the  new  Emperor  and  Em- 
press drove  to  their  own  palace,  where  they  remained  until 
his  manifesto  of  March  27th  was  issued,  designating  his 
brother,  the  Grand  Duke  Vladimir,  regent  in  case  of  his 
own  death  before  his  son,  the  present  Czarevitch,  at- 
tained his  majority. 

The  remains  of  the  dead  Emperor  lay  in  state  for  one 
week,  during  which  time  expressions  of  sympathy  and 
horror  at  the  dreadful  act  which  brought  about  his 
death,  poured  in  upon  the  Royal  Family  from  every  na- 
tion of  the  earth,  besides  hundreds  of  beautiful  tokens, 
from  contemporary  sovereigns  in  Europe,  such  as  wreaths 
of  silver,  crowns,  crosses  and  mottoes,  most  artistically 
worked,  of  the  same  precious  material.  On  Sunday, 
March  20th,  the  body  of  the  Emperor  was  taken  to  the 


15* 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


Fortress  Chapel  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  where  it  was  de- 
posited in  a  marble  sarcophagus  beside  the  remains  of  his 
loved  Empress,  who  died  of  a  lingering  illness  one  year  be- 


fore. After  the  workmen  had  deposited  the  coffin  in  the 
vault  beneath  the  Fortress  church,  and  removed  their 
tools,  the  Governor  of  the  city  went  down  into  the  pit 
alone,  srrnng  t«  *n«l  l»«k«d  tk«  h«avy  d«»r,  and  on 


EXILE  LIFI  IN  SIBERIA. 


153 


emerging  handed  the  key  to  the  chief  of  the  new  Czar's 
household,  in  the  presence  of  the  mourners  and  the  high 


dignitaries.     The  key  was  afterward  deposited  in  a  place 
of  great  security  in  the  Winter  Palace, 


154  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AN» 

The  Fortress  Chapel  is  one  of  the  rnost  elaborate  and 
gorgeous,  in  interior  decoration,  in  the  world.  It  is  the 
repository  of  all  members  of  the  House  of  Romanoff 
since  the  time  of  Peter  the  Great,  with  the  single  excep- 
tion of  Peter  II.,  who,  dying  in  Moscow,  was  by  his  own 
request  buried  there.  The  interior  presents  a  rare  com- 
bination of  gold,  silver  and  tinsel  work,  giving  an  ap- 
pearance of  fairy-like  splendor.  Arranged  around  the 
single  immense  room,  in  two  rows,  are  the  marble  sar- 
cophagi enclosed  by  an  iron  railing.  From  the  ceiling 
is  suspended  a  rich  canopy  reaching  down  over  the 
sacristy,  while  the  pillars  are  decorated  with  standards 
taken  in  the  wars  with  France,  Sweden,  Poland,  Turkey 
and  Persia.  There  are  also  several  silver  and  gold  icons 
— sacred  images — before  which  candles  are  kept  con- 
stantly burning.  On  the  sarcophagus  of  Alexander  II., 
and  also  on  that  of  the  Empress,  there  is  placed  a  gold 
crown  inside  of  which  a  small  lamp  is  always  burning, 
which,  throwing  its  rays  through  interstices  of  the 
crowns,  produces  a  beautiful  effect.  On  the  wall,  imme- 
diately opposite,  are  hung  the  emblems  of  mourning  pre- 
sented by  other  countries  after  the  Czar's  assassination, 
and  also  wreaths  of  immortelles  which  are  replaced,  from 
time  to  time,  by  those  who  revere  his  memory. 

Directly  after  the  Czar's  death,  Minister  Pleve,  who 
had  been  commissioned  to  the  position  he  now  holds  for 
his  services  in  detecting  those  concerned  in  the  palace  ex- 
plosion of  1879,  was  called  upon  to  discover  all  the  con- 
spirators concerned  in  the  commission  of  the  dreadful 
crime,  and  so  thoroughly  did  he  prosecute  his  investiga- 
tions, that  scarcely  had  the  Czar  been  laid  away,  before 
he  procured  the  arrest  of  Nicholas  Jelaboft',  Sophie  Pe- 
rofskaja,  Hessy  Helfmann,  Nicholas  Risakoff,  Gabriel 
Michailoff,  Jean  Kibaichich,  and  several  others  who, 
however,  proved  their  innocence. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


THE  FORTRESS  CHAPKL — LAST  RESTING  PLACE  OF  THE  IMPERIAL  DEAD. 


156 


KUSSIAX  NIHILISM  AND 


Directly  after  these  arrests  were  made  another  import- 
ant step  was  taken  in  consequence  of  discoveries  made  in 
examining  the  premises  and  opening  the  dynamite  mine 
laid  in  Little  Garden  street.  It  was  proved  that  the 
police  had  information  in  connection  with  the  mine, 


TOMB  OF  THE  EMPEROR  IN  THE  FORTRESS  CHAPEL  ONE  WEFK  AFTER  BUK1AL, 

which  if  utilized  would  have  led  to  the  arrest  of  the  con- 
spirators and  prevented  the  Czar' s  assassination .  The  pub- 
lic officers  accused  of  a  criminal  neglect  of  their  duties 
were  Major  General  Constantine  Mrovinsky ;  Paul  Teg- 
leff ,  chief  officer  of  the  Spassky  District ;  General  Fur- 
soff,  chief  of  the  Secret  Section  of  the  Prefecture,  and 


15<S  KUSSIAX  A 1 11 1  LI  SM  AND 

two  State  Councillors.  It  was  asserted  that  Mrovinsky 
had  been  instructed  by  Tegleff  to  make  a  thorough  in- 
spection of  Kobezeff's  quarters,  whose  milk  and  cheese 
shop  had  been  reported  as  being  a  headquarters  for  the 
Nihilists.  This  investigation  was  not  made  by  Mrovin- 
sky, while  Tegleff  was  charged  with  neglect  in  not  en- 
forcing the  order,  as  he  had  direct  information  of  Kobe- 
zeff's plot.  Fursoff  was  also  brought  to  trial  because  he 
took  no  measures  to  verify  the  suspicions  which  had  been 
communicated  to  him,  and  because  he  did  not  inform  his 
superiors  of  what  was  taking  place  until  the  evening  of 
the  assassination.  It  was  shown  that  the  three  officers 
did  visit  Kobezeff's  shop,  but  that  fin  ding  his  papers  reg- 
ular they  made  no  examination  of  the  premises. 

It  was  three  days  after  the  assassination  before  the  police 
entered  the  shop,  there  being  grave  fears  excited  that  an 
attempt  to  do  so  would  cause  an  explosion  of  the  mine. 
The  greatest  precautions  were  observed  after  an  entrance 
was  at  length  made,  when  a  tunnel  was  discovered  lead- 
ing across  the  street,  and  two  batteries  in  wooden  boxes 
were  found,  with  their  wires  ready  for  use.  Had  the 
two  poles  of  the  batteries  been  brought  in  contact  (and 
they  were  not  more  than  three  inches  apart)  an  instan- 
taneous explosion  would  have  followed.  It  is  therefore 
an  act  of  singular  fortune  that  the  mine  was  uncovered 
without  causing  a  calamity  of  gigantic  proportions. 

The  assassins,  arrested  through  the  skilful  detective 
ability  of  Pleve,  were  brought  to  trial  on  April  9th. 
The  Judges,  who  were  presided  over  by  Senator 
Fuehs,  held  their  sittings  in  the  Circuit  Court  of  the  Li- 
tejnaja  Prospekt.  Both  the  inside  and  the  outside  of  the 
building  were  carefully  guarded  by  police,  Who  prevented 
all  persons  except  those  furnished  with  special  passes 
from  entering.  At  each  end  of  the  dock  also  stood  two 


EXILE  LIF      IN  SIBERIA. 


159 


K)Q  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AN» 

gendarmes  with  drawn  swords,  and  in  front  of  the  pris- 
oners sat  their  counsel.  The  Procurer,  or  Crown  Advo- 
cate, sat  at  the  end  of  the  judicial  bench,  and  on  a  table 
in  the  centre  of  the  room  were  tire  mute  evidences  of  the 
prisoners'  guilt  in  the  form  of  bombs,  bottles  of  explo- 
sive liquids,  etc.  Above  hung  a  picture  of  the  late  Czar, 
draped  in  black  hangings.  The  proceedings  were  ex- 
ceedingly simple.  First  the  indictment  was  read,  and  to 
this  each  prisoner  in  turn  replied  by  a  long  speech,  in  no 
way  repudiating  his  or  her  complicity  in  the  Revolution- 
ary movement,  although  some  denied  being  concerned  ii: 
the  actual  assassination  of  the  Czar.  The  prisoners  were 
six  in  number :  Risakoff,  the  man  who  threw  the  first 
bomb  (Elnikoff,  who  threw  the  second,  died  from  the  ef- 
fects of  the  explosion)  ;  Sophie  Perofskaja,  the  well- 
known  female  conspirator,  who  gave  the  signal  by  wav- 
ing a  handkerchief  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  canal  ; 
Jelaboff,  the  organizer  of  the  attempt,  and  an  agent  in 
the  third  degree  of  the  Revolutionary  Executive  Commit- 
tee ;  Kibaichich,  who  appears  to  have  prepared  the  ex- 
plosive liquids  ;  Hessy  Helfman,  a  Jewess,  who  was  ar- 
rested in  the  Nihilist  laboratory  in  Telejewskaja  street  a 
day  or  two  after  the  attempt,  and  Gabriel  Michaeloff ,  who 
was  arrested  while  entering  one  of  the  Nihilists'  resorts 
which  had  been  discovered  and  occupied  by  the  police. 
After  the  prisoners  had  made  their  speeches,  witnesses 
were  examined,  having  been  previously  sworn  by  minis- 
ters of  their  own  persuasion.  These  pastors  ranged  from 
a  Moslem  mollah  to  a  Dominican  monk,  and  contributed 
a  picturesque  air  to  the  scene.  Then  the  Procurer,  M. 
Mouravieff,  commenced  his  summing-up  of  the  charges 
against  the  prisoners,  seizing  the  occasion  for  a  political 
denunciation  of  the  Revolutionists  and  the  countries  which 
sheltered  them,  and  going  minutely  into  the  character  and 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


161 


career  of  the  various  prisoners.     Of  these  Sophie  Perofs- 
kaja  alone  belonged  to  the  class  of  nobles.     She  seems, 


1 


however,  very  early  to  have  had  a  will  of  her  own,  as  she 
iled  from  her  home  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  and  is  stated 
to  have  lived  thereafter  on  her  own  resources  taking,  ia 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

late  years  of  her  life  considerable  part  in  the  Nihilists' 
plots.  She  it  was  who  gave  the  signal  for  the  explosion 
on  the  Moscow  line  when  the  pilot  train  was  wrecked. 
Her  grandfather  was  a  Minister  of  State,  and  her  father 
had  been  Governor  of  St.  Petersburg.  She  had  for  some 
time  been  the  companion  of  Jelaboff,  who  is  said  to  have 
been  the  type  of  a  Revolutionary  leader,  and  one  of  the 
most  important  members  of  the  party.  Kisakoff,  who 
had  been  a  pupil  of  the  School  of  Mines,  andKibaichich, 
once  a  member  of  the  Academy  of  Engineers,  were  por- 
trayed as  simple  instruments  in  Jelaboff 's  hands,  and  also 
Michael  off ,  who  was  a  poor,  uneducated  peasant.  To  the 
Procurer  replied  either  the  prisoners  or  their  counsel,  as 
the  former  thought  proper,  and  Jelaboff  made  another 
oration  in  favor  of  his  Socialistic  opinions. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  annals  of  criminal  jurisprudence 
of  more  thrilling  interest,  in  the  display  of  unexampled 
fortitude  and  fanatical  heroism,  than  is  shown  in  the 
record  of  this  great  political  trial.  So  great  was  the 
thirst  of  these  criminals  for  the  approbation  of  their  com- 
patriots, that  when  this  opportunity  came  for  immolating 
themselves  in  the  cause  of  anarchy,  they  unflinching!^ 
acknowledged  their  guilt  and  dared  the  Imperial  power 
to  expend  its  vengeance  on  them.  To  the  question  put 
to  them  by  the  Court :  "  Are  you  guilty  or  not  guilty?" 
Jelaboff,  the  arch  assassin,  responded:  "Guilty,  and  I 
would  to  God  that  my  crime-  had  been  greater.  Of  no 
act  in  my  life  am  I  so  proud,  and  it  gives  me  a  felicitous 
pleasure  in  acknowledging  the  part  I  took  in  assassinat- 
ing the  Emperor.  Not  that  I  entertained  a  special  per- 
sonal dislike  for  him,  but  because,  as  a  patriot,  I  de- 
tested the  policy  which  he  pursued  for  the  oppression  of 
his  subjects.  The  fate  which  overtook  the  dead  Emperor 
awaits  his  successor  as  surely  as  there  is  a  God  who 
reckons  the  crimes  of  oppressors." 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA, 


1GB 


1 


1()4  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXD 

Jelaboff  would  have  said  much  more  had  he  not  been 
restrained  by  the  bailiffs,  this  much  of  his  speech  being 
delivered  in  spite  of  their  efforts  to  enforce  his  silence. 
The  sentiment  he  expressed  was  re-echoed  by  his  accesso- 
ries, so  that  nothing  remained  for  the  Court  to  do  but  hear 
testimony  from  the  Government  witnesses  and  to  pass 
sentence  of  death  upon  the  accused.  It  has  been  stated, 
but  not  confirmed,  that  after  the  prisoners  were  sen- 
tenced and  returned  to  the  Fortress  prison,  one  or  more 
of  them  were  subjected  to  the  most  agonizing  torture,  in 
order  to  force  from  them  a  confession  that  would  expose 
all  their  associates  in  crime,  and  whatever  information 
they  possessed  of  the  Nihilists'  plots  and  intentions. 
There  appeared  in  several  daily  papers  published  in 
America,  a  lengthy  correspondence  from  abroad,  detail- 
ing elaborately  the  punishments  inflicted  upon  the  con- 
demned ;  that  red-hot  needles  were  introduced  beneath 
their  finger  nails,  and  that  the  nails  on  their  toes  were 
torn  off,  after  which  fire  was  applied  to  the  bared  flesh  ; 
but  though  one  gentleman  in  St.  Petersburg  assured  me 
that  such  torture  was  really  committed  upon  Jelaboff,  yet 
T  feel  assured  there  is  not  the  least  truth  in  such  report. 
Indeed,  two  gentlemen  who  wore  witnesses  of  the  execu- 
tion, and  who  were  near  enough  to  Jelaboff  to  observe 
fully  his  condition,  particularly  as  his  feet  were  bare,  de- 
clared to  me  that  the  story  of  torture  was  an  absurdity. 
My  purpose  in  mentioning  the  report  here  is  only  to  give 
it  denial,  which  is  an  act  of  justice  to  the  Russian  Gov- 
ernment that  I  cannot  consistently  withhold. 

The  day  for  the  execution  of  the  six  criminals  was 
fixed  for  April  15th,  but  the  sentence  was  commuted  as 
to  Hessy  Helfmann,  to  exile  in  Siberia  for  life,  owing  to 
the  fact  that  she  was  about  to  become  a  mother. 

On  the  13th  of  April  a  mad  attempt  to  rescue  the  prison- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SLBEKIA. 


165 


ers  was  made  by  a  mob  of  nearly  two  hundred  persons, 
who  forced  their  way  into  the  large  court  of  the  Fortress 
and  demanded  the  production  of  the  culprits.  A  large 
force  of  soldiers  and  police  attacked  the  would-be  rescu- 


ers, killing  some  and  wounding  several,  while  nearly  all 
the  others  were  arrested ;  on  the  persons  of  twenty  of 
those  arrested  bombs  were  found,  but  why  none  of  them 
were  used  is  a  question  difficult  to  answer. 


166  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

It  was  expected  that  at  the  execution  another  attempt 
would  be  made  to  rescue  the  condemned,  to  meet  which 
a  large  body  of  soldiers  was  ordered  to  escort  the  cul- 
prits and  form  in  hollow  square  around  the  gallows. 
This  served  to  prevent  any  demonstration  upon  the  part 
of  sympathizers,  for  although  the  crowd  who  witnessed 
the  execution  numbered  not  less  than  five  thousand  per- 
sons, perfect  order  was  maintained;  indeed,  strange 
enough,  there  was  no  sympathy  whatever  manifested  for 
the  assassins. 

As  the  condemned  mounted  the  gallows  there  was  an 
oppressive  silence  wholly  unrelieved  until  Risakoff  fainted 
as  the  noose  was  being  adjusted  about  his  neck ;  the 
others  manifested  perfect  composure  to  the  last.  The 
execution,  however,  proved  a  sickening  scene,  for  in  ad- 
dition to  the  feeling  created  by  reason  of  Risakoff  faint- 
ing, the  rope  which  suspended  Michaeloff  broke,  so  that 
the  half -suffocated  criminal  fell  in  a  heap  on  the  platform. 
Unable  now  to  stand,  he  was  picked  up  in  a  limp  condition 
by  two  deputies  who  adjusted  another  rope  about  his  neck. 
But  astonishing  to  relate,  again  the  rope  broke,  and  thus  the 
horrible  scene  of  hanging  one  man  three  times  was  wit- 
nessed, which  drew  forth  many  expressions  of  disgust  from 
the  crowd,  who  jeered  at  and  reviled  the  executioners. 

Thus  terminated  the  last  act  connected  with  the  most 
exciting  and  dreadful  incident  in  Russian  history.  The 
love  borne  for  Alexander  II.,  by  a  very  large  majority  of 
his  subjects,  was  greater  perhaps  than  that  shown  by  the 
Russians  for  any  other  sovereign,  and  as  time  passes  their 
appreciation  for  the  many  good  qualities,  which  he  un- 
doubtedly possessed,  rapidly  increases,  as  may  be  seen  by 
the  demonstrations  still  made  to  keep  his  memory  fresh 
in  their  hearts.  A  memorial  chapel  was  erected  over  the 
spot  where  the  Emperor  received  his  fatal  wounds,  which 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


167 


CHAPEL  ERECTED  ON  THE  SPOT  WHERE  THE  EMPEROR  WAS  ASSASSINATED. 


168  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

was  dedicated  to  his  remembrance  on  the  29th  of  April, 
1881,  by  the  Metropolitan  Archbishop  Isidore.  There 
were  present  at  the  services  an  immense  crowd  of  citizens 
from  every  part  of  the  Empire,  nearly  all  the  Imperial  fam- 
ily, Ministers  of  State,  and  many  foreign  ambassadors. 
The  new  Emperor  and  Empress  were  the  only  notables 
absent,  a  fact  much  commented  upon  at  the  time,  as  it 
was  an  evidence  that  Alexander  III.  entertained  fears  for 
his  own  life,  and  therefore  would  not  trust  himself  among 
a  promiscuous  assemblage,  even  though  his  person  were 
guarded  by  a  multitude  of  soldiers. 

The  chapel  thus  erected  was  a  light  frame  structure 
covered  with  immortelles  and  beautiful  flowers  contribu- 
ted from  relatives  and  sympathizers  at  home  and  abroad. 
During  the  present  year,  however,  a  more  substantial 
chapel  was  built  to  replace  the  original  one,  in  which 
there  are  three  altars  covered  with  a  full  service  of 
church  plate  of  gold  and  silver  of  the  finest  chased  work- 
manship. It  is  intended  to  erect  a  magnificent  memorial 
church  on  the  spot,  which  is  regarded  as  sacred,  out  of 
the  voluntary  contributions  made  for  that  purpose  by 
faithful  subjects  of  the  Empire  ;  to  this  end  a  repository 
is  affixed  to  the  chapel  which  is  daily  filled  by  small  of- 
ferings from  the  hundreds  of  peasants  who  repair  to  the 
place  to  offer  up  prayers.  A  guard  is  constantly  sta- 
tioned before  the  chapel  to  guard  its  treasures,  and  all 
footmen  passing  the  shrine  reverently  remove  their  hats 
and  cross  themselves  as  a  token  of  the  love  they  bear  for 
the  Emperor's  memory. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

WHEN  Alexander  III.  assumed  the  royal  purple,  which 
had  been  crimsoned  by  his  father's  blood,  everyone  confi- 
dently predicted  a  great  change  from  the  previous  ad- 
ministration. So  seriously  was  the  nation  shocked  by 
the  death  of  Alexander  II.  that  there  was  a  revulsion  in 
public  sentiment  against  the  anarchists,  and  in  favor  of  the 
autocracy;  many  leading  Nihilists  even,  particularly  in 
London  and  Geneva,  expressed  chagrin  and  condemnation 
at  the  assassination,  which  produced  an  effect  in  Russia  to 
the  serious  detriment  of  Nihilism.  But  this  sympathy 
was  short-lived,  a  fact  which  I  have  no  hesitancy  in  de- 
claring was  due  wholly  to  the  retirement  Alexander  III., 
thus  giving  incontestable  proof  of  his  alarm.  Not  satis- 
fied with  the  protection  afforded  him  at  his  palace  in  St. 
Petersburg,  he  removed  his  State  residence  to  Peterhoff, 
where  special  arrangements  for  his  security  were  provided. 

Upon  a  hill,  overlooking  the  Finland  Gulf  and  com- 
manding a  beautiful,  though  distant  view  of  Cronstandt, 
stands  the  Imperial  Palace,  a  large  and  elegant  structure 
with  all  the  accessories  of  royalty.  There  is  a  large  fish 
pond,  and  an  immense  lake  adjacent,  its  shores  embow- 
ered Ivy  lofty  trees  and  its  bosom  studded  with  beau- 
tiful islands,  on  one  of  which  there  is  an  ornate  building 
provided  especially  for  the  Emperor  to  dine  in  during 
the  summer  months.  The  palace  grounds  are,  beyond 
compare,  the  finest  in  all  Europe,  far  surpassing  those 
around  the  Great  Trianon  in  Versailles  ;  indeed,  they  ap- 
pear more  like  fairy-land  than  the  surroundings  of  a  self- 
exiled  potentate.  Such  fountains  can  be  seen  in  no 
other  place,  and  are  positively  bewildering  in  their 
beauty.  One  of  these,  called  the  Golden  Stairway 


1  70  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Fountain,  is  extravagant  with  magnificence.  It  consists 
of  twenty-four  steps,  each  twenty  feet  long,  one  foot  high 
and  one  foot  in  breadth,  of  pure  gold.  Of  course 
the  steps  are  not  solid  gold,  for  there  is  not  suffi- 
cient of  the  precious  metal  in  all  the  world  to  cast  so 
many  blocks  of  such  a  size  ;  but  the  sheets  of  gold  used 
in  making  them  are  of  enormous  value,  in  fact  princely. 
This  fountain  leads  down  from  the  Court  entrance  of  the 
palace,  and  as  the  water  pours  over  in  a  succession  of 
cascades,  glimmering  with  a  golden  sheen,  the  effect  is 
bewitching  in  its  incomparable  splendor.  But  there  are 
many  other  fountains  on  the  grounds  of  only  secondary 
importance,  on  which  gold  is  a  conspicuous  feature, 
blending  inartistic  beauty  with  statues  of  men,  animals, 
fowls  and  reptiles. 

But  the  new  Czar  takes  no  pleasure  in  surroundings 
so  grandly  beautiful,  for  looking  only  to  a  retreat  that 
promises  security  from  Nihilistic  conspiracies,  he  makes 
his  residence  in  a  small  cottage  on  thePeterhoff  grounds, 
which  is  enclosed  by  a  double  wall  ten  feet  high  and  two 
feet  thick.  There  is  only  a  small  garden  about  this 
humble  building,  in  which  the  Czar  takes  occasional 
walks,  but  never  except  in  some  disguise,  on  account  of 
a  distrust  which  he  has  for  every  servant  about  him.  A 
party  of  Cossacks  are  day  and  night  on  guard  around  the 
inner  wall,  and  a  full  company  of  Finnish  guards  are  al- 
ways on  duty,  mounted,  around  the  outer  wall  ;  so  that 
a  body  of  men  who  would  attempt  to  forcibly  reach  the 
Emperor,  could  only  do  so  by  dispersing  two  lines  of 
guards  and  overcoming  a  large  body-guard  that  attends 
his  Majesty.  But  even  these  precautions  do  not  com- 
prise all  the  measures  taken  to  preserve  the  Czar's  life 
from  assassination.  He  has  given  an  imperative  order  to 
his  guards  to  shoot  down,  without  challenge,  any  one  who 


EXILE  L1FK  IX  SL15KR1A. 


171 


ALEXANDER  III.  AND  THE  ROYAL  FAMILY. 


172  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

shall  approach  within  fifty  feet  of  him  in  his  garden 
without  special  permission.  During  my  stay  in  St.  Pe- 
tersburg, in  July,  1882,  a  melancholy  incident  of  this 
ridiculous  order  occurred,  which  shocked  the  whole  city. 
It  being  a  warm  day,  the  Emperor  went  into  his  garden, 
and  while  passing  along  one  of  the  gravelled  walks,  he 
discovered  a  shrub  that  had  been  broken  down  by  some 
careless  act.  Not  far  from  him  was  an  old  man,  beyond 
sixty  years  of  age,  engaged  in  cultivating  flowers ;  the 
Czar  beckoned  to  him,  intending  to  instruct  him  to 
bind  up  the  broken  shrub.  In  obedience  to  the  tacit 
call,  the  old  man  started  over  to  where  the  Emperor  was, 
but  when  he  approached  within  the  forbidden  distance, 
a  guard,  who  had  not  observed  the  Emperor's  motion, 
fired  upon  the  innocent  old  gardener,  killing  him  instantly. 
It  is  said  the  Czar  was  very  much  angered  at  the  guard, 
and  that  besides  having  his  victim  buried  with  the  honors 
accorded  a  faithful  soldier  who  dies  on  duty,  he  also 
granted  a  pension  to  the  murdered  man's  family. 

But  in  addition  to  these  precautions,  there  are  three  cor- 
vettes stationed  in  the  gulf  facing  the  grounds  enclosing 
the  Czar's  cottage,  armed  with  long-range  rifle-guns,  to 
guard  against  approaches  by  sea.  No  boat,  however 
small,  is  permitted  to  land  before  the  Emperor's  grounds  ; 
electric  lights  are  kept  burning  all  night  on  the  corvettes, 
which  flood  the  sea  and  shore  with  radience  and  enable 
the  naval  guard  to  detect  any  craft  which  might  appear 
approaching  the  royal  residence. 

Occasionally  the  Emperor  visits  his  palace  at  Gatchi- 
na,  twenty  miles  inland  from  Peterhoff,  where  equally 
strong  measures  for  his  protection  are  provided.  When 
making  the  trip  between  these  two  places  he  is  in  dis- 
guise and  never  allows  any  intimation  of  his  visit  to  be  an- 
nounced beforehand. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  173 

This  isolation,  through  fear,  is  an  invitation  to  danger, 
and  serves  to  exalt 'Nihilism  far  beyond  its  own  inherent 
strength.  How  great  the  contrast  between  Alexander 
III.  and  Nicholas  I.  is  shown  in  the  following  historical 
incident.  In  1854,  when  Russia  was  staggering  under 
destructive  defeats  from  the  Allied  Forces,  a  plague  seized 
upon  the  people,  so  that  they  died  in  great  numbers. 
Ignorant,  superstitious  and  rebellious,  a  cry  was  raised 
by  his  subjects  that  Nicholas  had  ordered  all  the  waters 
of  Russia  poisoned  ;  that  he  had  colluded  with  the  phy- 
sicians of  his  Empire  to  destroy  his  people  because  they 
grumbled  at  extravagances  practiced  in  conducting  the 
war.  This  senseless  cry  soon  grew  into  a  concerted  plan 
for  vengeance,  which  more  than  three  thousand  men  as- 
sembled in  Alexander  Square  to  put  into  execution.  The 
Emperor,  who  was  in  the  Winter  Palace,  immediately 
comprehended  the  danger  of  his  position,  and  with  quick 
perception,  seized  upon  the  only  possible  plan  that  could 
save  his  life. 

The  palace  being  surrounded  escape  was  imposible, 
while  there  were  no  soldiers  whom  the  Czar  could  sum- 
mon to  his  aid.  Hastily  putting  on  his  Imperial  helmet 
and  regimentals  he  declared  to  the  attendants  his  inten- 
tion of  boldly  facing  the  mob.  All  attempts  to  per- 
suade him  from  this  purpose  being  unavailing,  his  aid-de- 
camp begged  to  be  allowed  the  privilege  of  accompany- 
ing him,  but  this  Nicholas  refused,  saying  :  "  If  my  life 
is  to  be  taken  it  would  avail  nothing  to  sacrifice  yours 
also."  With  this  he  descended  the  stairway  and  alone 
marched  out  into  the  mob  who,  awed  by  his  majestic 
manner,  gave  way  and  permitted  him  unmolested  to  gain 
the  Alexander  Column.  Being  now  in  the  very  center  of 
his  enemies,  he  mounted  upon  a  block  which  stood  be- 
side the  column  and  in  a  stentorian  voice  shouted  :  "  Chil- 


174  ftUSStAX  NIHILISM  AND 

dren  !  Dogs!  Down  upon  your  knees!"  As  though 
stricken  by  a  stroke  from  heaven,  that  vast  assemblage, 
who  had  before  been  howling  for  the  Emperor's  blood, 
dropped  upon  their  knees  with  one  accord  and  then 
shouted:  "Brave  Nicholas!  we  hail  you  Emperor  of 
all  Russia  ;  long  live  your  Gracious  Majesty  !" 

This  incident  serves  to  show  the  mercurial  disposition 
of  all  Russians.  Brave  themselves,  nothing  excites  in 
them  such  admiration  as  an  act  of  defiance  when  dan- 
ger threatens. 

A  knowledge  of  Russian  character  leads  directly  to 
the  belief-  that  if  Alexander  III.  would  assume  a  fearless 
attitude,  by  presenting  himself  before  his  people,  like 
one  under  the  segis  of  patriotic  resolution,  he  would  dis- 
pel the  specter  of  assassination  and  be  hailed  as  a  sover- 
eign worthy  the  scepter  he  holds.  But  so  sure  as  he 
continues  to  manifest  fear,  and  cowers  before  an  exag- 
gerated idea  of  his  enemies,  so  sure  will  he  be  hurled  from 
the  throne  by  either  a  gigantic  insurrectionary  movement 
or  fall  a  victim  to  some  fanatic  now  plotting  his  destruc- 
tion. No  measures  of  protection,  however  rigid,  can 
save  him,  for  assassins  will  spring  up  in  his  most  secret 
chamber,  among  those  most  implicity  trusted,  or  reach 
him  through  tunnels,  which  desperate  Nihilists  never  tire 
of  digging.  This  is  even  now  his  dread,  for  before  com- 
ing to  the  throne  he  had  his  chin  shaved  every  morning, 
but  since  then  no  razor  has  touched  his  face  ;  not  a  mouth- 
ful of  food  or  wine  is  taken  by  him  now  until  all  the 
dishes  set  before  him  are  tasted  by  his  butler  ;  the  room 
in  which  he  sleeps  is  secured  by  two  immense  iron  doors, 
while  the  windows  are  provided  with  heavy  bars,  so  that 
household  enemies  may  not  steal  upon  him  at  night. 
The  humblest  peasant  in  all  Russia  would  not  exchange 
places  with  this  unhappy  autocrat,  whose  crown  weighs 
upon  him  like  a  besom  of  death. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  175 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  cessation  of  crime  which  followed  the  assassination 
of  Alexander  II.  inspired  the  law  and  order  class  of  Russia 
with  the  hope  that  Nihilism  had  spent  its  force  and  would 
permit  the  results  of  that  desperate  work  to  determine 
their  purposes.  But  this  hope  was  soon  dispelled,  for  in 
the  succeeding  fall  fresh  outrages  were  reported,  which 
were  followed  by  a  more  retributive  or  vindictive  policy  of 
police  surveillance.  About  the  same  time  there  came  re- 
ports of  the  most  brutal  attacks  being  made  upon  Jewish 
merchants  in  several  districts  of  lower  Russia,  a  descrip- 
tion of  which  will  be  given  hereafter. 

Among  the  more  harassing  difficulties  with  which  the 
Government  had  to  deal  were  the  secret  printing  offices. 
These  breeders  of  sedition  appeared  in  every  large  city, 
and  their  products  were  scattered  through  every  hamlet 
in  the  nation.  When  one  office  was  discovered  and  de- 
stroyed another  quickly  took  its  place,  so  that  suppres- 
sion has  rather  worked  against  the  Government.  Many 
of  these  offices  became  the  scene  of  bloody  conflicts  be- 
tween the  Nihilists  and  police,  in  which  not  a  few  women 
took  active  part,  displaying  a  desperate  bravery  rarely 
exhibited  by  the  sex.  In  fact  there  has  been  a  heroism 
manifested  by  female  Nihilists  surpassed  by  no  incidents 
of  individual  fearlessness  in  all  history. 

Vera  Zassulitch,  whose  shot  inaugurated  terrorism, 
was  the  most  modest  of  her  sex.  In  the  court  room  she 
blushed  when  she  perceived  any  one  staring  at  her. 
Eugenia  Figner,  a  charming  lady  and  an  accomplished 
singer,  got  her  eight  years  in  the  Siberian  mines  by  sit- 
ting in  a  parlor  playing  the  piano  for  weary  hours,  try- 
ing to  drown  the  noise  made  by  the  secret  printing-press 


176 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


in   the   adjoining    room.       Anna    Lebedeff,    a    priest's 
daughter,  in  the  disguse  of   the  wife  of  a  switchman, 


KATHERIKE  HAMKRCLIDZE. 


ANNA   TOPORKOFK. 


SOPHIA  BARDIN. 
LEADING  FEMALE  NIHILISTS 

lived  in  a  watch-house  on  the  railroad,  and  was  found  on 
a  box  filled  with  dynamite,  chatting  with  the  switchman. 
Sophie  Perof  skaja,  the  daughter  of  a  general  and  senator, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBEKIA.  177 

who  declined  the  dignity  of  maid  of  honor  to  the  Em- 
press and  entered  the  Nihilist  fraternity,  dug  the  Mos- 
cow mine  and  directed  the  late  Czar's  assassination. 
Sophie  Bardin,  who  was  welcomed  as  a  shining  star  in  the 
literary  horizon,  wrote  a  few  poems  which,  though  gems 
of  Kussian  literature,  were  treasonable,  and  the  singing 
of  them  is  a  State  crime. 

The  Soobotin  and  Lubatovitch  sisters  were  ladies  of 
many  accomplishments  and  noted  also  for  their  beauty 
and  purity,  yet  they  stimulated  their  male  colaborers  by 
many  acts  of  cunning  and  recklessness.  The  two  former 
acted  as  spies,  and  actually  secured  from  a  leading  offi- 
cer all  the  immediate  plans  of  Gen.  Ignatieff  for  over- 
coming Nihilism,  besides  finding  put,  through  a  different 
source,  the  persons  in  their  party  against  whom  the  Gov- 
ernment had  suspicions.  The  two  latter  distributed 
incendiary  literature  not  only  throughout  Moscow  and  St. 
Petersburg,  but  in  the  very  offices  of  the  police  authori- 
ties. Helene  Eossikoff  planned  the  robbery  of  the  treas- 
ury at  Cherson,  from  the  vaults  of  which  were  taken 
1,500,000  roubles  ($750,000)  for  Nihilistic  purposes. 
Mary  Griasnova  incited  three  of  her  comrades,  who  were 
detected  conducting  a  revolutionary  organ,  to  defend 
their  property  against  an  attack  made  upon  them  by 
nearly  twenty  policemen.  In  this  fight  she  killed  two 
officers  and  wounded  three  others,  though  she  was  herself 
seriously  shot  and  had  to  fire  from  a  prostrate  position. 
When  her  companions  surrendered  she  reviled  them  as 
cowards,  and  nothing  silenced  her  but  death,  which  came 
after  a  lingering  agony  of  three  days.  M'lles  Torporkoff , 
Hamkrclidze,  Khorjevski,  Ivanova,  and  many  other 
women  have  signally  distinguished  themselves  among  the 
Nihilists  as  leaders  of  great  power,  while  their  examples 
have  all  served  to  infuse  their  confreres  with  determina- 


178 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


tion  to  dare  and  do  without  regard  for  the  results  which 
their  desperate  acts  might  entail. 

On  the  28th  of  February,  1882,  the  scene  of  serious 


disturbance  was  transferred  from  St.  Petersburg  to 
Odessa,  where  General  Strelnikoff,  the  Public  Prosecutor 
at  the  Kieff  Military  Tribunal,  who  distinguished  himself 
in  various  Nihilist  trials,  was  shot  in  broad  daylight  on 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  179 

the  Boulevard  in  that  city.  Three  men  were  concerned 
in  the  murder;  two  were  captured,  but  the  third  es- 
caped. The  Czar  was  so  angered  at  the  news  that  he  at 
first  ordered  the  prisoners  to  be  executed  within  twenty- 
four  hours,  but  afterward  changed  his  mind  and  decided 
that  they  should  be  tried  in  due  form.  Accordingly  they 
were  tried  and  sentenced  to  death  on  Saturday,  March 
llth.  The  funeral  of  General  Strelnikoff  took  place  on 
Sunday  morning,  March  5th,  with  full  military  honors. 
Curiously  enough,  this  crime  happened  within  a  few 
hours  after  the  commutation  by  the  Czar  of  the  sentence  of 
death  passed  on  the  prisoners  in  the  Trigonia  trial.  One 
man  alone,  Soukahnoff,  was  excepted,  owing  to  his  being 
a  lieutenant  in  the  navy.  He,  however,  was  spared  the 
disgrace  of  dying  at  the  hands  of  the  hangman,  but  was 
taken  to  Cronstadt  and  shot  by  a  detachment  of  marines. 

It  is  the  custom  observed  by  all  of  Russia's  former 
Emperors  to  repair  to  Moscow  six  months  after  assuming 
the  title  of  Czar,  and  there,  in  the  Royal  Chapel,  be 
crowned  according  to  ceremonies  prescribed  by  the  Greek 
Church,  for  it  must  be  understood  that  in  tradition, 
though  not  in  fact,  the  Church  is  more  potential  than  the 
Czar.  These  ceremonies  are  magnificent  beyond  descrip- 
tion and  are  participated  in  by  every  one  who  can  crowd 
into  the  city.  They  are  invariably  followed  by  a  season 
of  festivities  which  frequently  last  for  thirty  days. 

Owing  to  apprehensions  of  an  attack  being  made  upon 
his  person  if  exposed,  Alexander  III.  still  wears  the 
crown  which  he  placed  upon  his  own  head  the  day  of  his 
father's  death.  Several  notices  were  semi-officially  given 
at  various  times  to  the  effect  that  the  coronation  services 
would  occur  at  Moscow,  and  during  my  visit  to  that  city, 
in  August,  1882,  great  preparations  were  being  made  for 
the  positively  promised  event.  The  Royal  Chapel,  which 


180  RUS81AX  NIHILISM  AND 

is  used  upon  no  other  occasion,  was  being  sumptuously 
decorated,  and  three  hundred  Court  waiters  had  just  been 
sent  down  from  St.  Petersburg,  whose  services  were  ex- 
pected to  be  required  at  the  Imperial  feast,  which  was  to 
follow  the  coronation.  In  addition  to  these  preparations, 
made  on  so  grand  a  scale,  the  Great  Votive  church  was 
thrown  open  for  public  inspection  upon  the  presentation 
of  permits  issued  only  by  the  City  Metropolitan.  This 
church  is  used  only  once  during  each  Czar's  reign,  these 
occasions  being  the  day  following  the  coronation,  when 
the  Emperor  and  Empress  repair  to  its  sanctuary  for 
blessings  of  the  Church,  and  where  they  also  listen  to  a 
sermon  prepared  specially  for  their  benefit.  This  sacred 
edifice  stands  upon  an  elevation  commanding  a  fine  view 
of  the  city,  and  is  an  object  of  veneration  to  all  Muscov- 
ites. With  the  exception  of  the  Winter  Palace  there  is, 
perhaps,  no  building  in  all  Russia  that  can  compare  with 
it  in  magnificence.  It  is  built  of  marble  taken  from  the 
Finland  and  Siberian  quarries,  and  polished  until  all  its 
walls,  floors  and  pilasters  reflect  images  like  a  looking- 
glass  ;  the  dome  is  covered  with  gold,  and  there  are  many 
gold  and  silver  candelabras  and  icons,  while  in  the  inte- 
rior of  the  dome  is  a  painting  of  the  Trinity  involving  a 
marvellous  conception.  The  principal  figure  measures 
thirty  feet  between  the  out-stretched  hands,  though  the 
altitude  is  so  great  that  it  appears  almost  the  natural  size 
of  a  man.  There  are  two  chairs  reserved  for  the  Em- 
peror and  Empress,  which  are  stationary,  fronting  the 
chancel,  that  for  both  beauty  and  value  exceed  the  throne 
chair  in  St.  George's  room  of  the  Winter  Palace.  They 
are  made  of  ivory-colored  marble,  most  exquisitely  en- 
chased with  gold  flower  work,  while  the  seats  and  cush- 
ioned backs  are  covered  with  gold  plates  studded  with 
precious  stones  forming  the  national  coat  of  arms. 


EXILE  LIFE  LN  SIBERIA 


181 


&USSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Every  day,  for  more  than  a  month,  the  people  ex- 
pected to  receive  definite  announcement  of  the  Emperor's 
coming,  until  the  shocking  news  was  received  instead 
that  a  dynamite  mine  had  been  discovered  beneath  the 
Eoyal  Chapel.  This  fact  immediately  dissipated  further 
expectation,  and  it  was  then  predicted  that  the  coronation 
would  not  take  place  before  the  following  year.  No  an- 
nouncement, however,  was  made  by  the  Government,  and 
preparations  continued  to  be  made.  During  all  this  time 
Count  Tolstoi  was  in  communication  with  the  Nihilists, 
who  promised  to  guarantee  the  safety  of  the  Emperor  at 
the  coronation  services  if  he  would,  previous  to  the  oc- 
currence, publish  his  annual  manifesto  granting  liberty  to 
certain  of  their  compatriots  then  in  exile  or  held  in  the 
Fortress  prison. 

Suddenly,  without  any  notice  whatsoever,  the  Czar  ap- 
peared in  Moscow.  Before  leaving  St.  Petersburg  he 
had  ordered  every  one  off  the  streets  by  12  M.,  on  the 
night  of  September  15th.  No  one  understood  why  such 
an  order  was  given  until  the  next  day,  when  it  was  learned 
that  the  Emperor  had  departed  by  special  train  at  one 
o'clock,  A.  M.,  for  Moscow.  He  also  took  the  precaution 
to  line  the  rail  route  with  thirty  thousand  troops,  string- 
ing them  out  so  that  the  men  were  formed  eighty  feet 
apart  extending  all  the  way  between  the  two  cities,  and  a 
pilot  engine  was  run  half-a-mile  ahead  of  the  Imperial  train 
to  report  any  obstructions  which  might  appear.  Thus 
the  Czar  made  his  first  trip  to  the  "Holy  Mother"  (a 
title  long  since  given  to  Moscow  by  devout  Muscovites), 
but  it  was  not  for  coronation  purposes,  as  many  at 
first  supposed.  He  visited  the  great  exposition  then 
being  held,  also  the  Imperial  Palace  in  the  Kremlin, 
but  there  was  a  large  cordon  of  soldiers  surround- 
ing him  wherever  he  went,  besides  a  special  guard'  with 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


183 


184  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

bayonets  at  a  "  present.''  After  spending  four  days  in 
Moscow,  and  giving  notice  that  he  would  remain  one 
week  longer,  so  as  to  continue  the  impression  that  the 
coronation  would  take  place,  he  mysteriously  disappeared 
again  and  turned  up  at  St.  Petersburg/  It  was  two  days 
after  his  departure  before  the  people  learned  positively 
that  their  Emperor  was  not  in  Moscow,  or  credited  the 
report  that  the  coronation  had  been  postponed. 

The  fear  which  possesses  Alexander  III.  has  caused 
a  renewal  of  the  agitation  first  begun  during  the 
reign  of  Catharine  II.,  for  a  removal  of  the  Imperial 
Court  from  St.  Petersburg  to  Moscow,  where  it  remained 
established  once  for  nearly  five  hundred  years.  It  is 
claimed  that  St.  Petersburg  is  not  a  representative  Russian 
city,  being  too  cosmopolitan  in  population,  and  Euro- 
pean in  architecture  ;  that  it  is  for  these  reasons  the  Nihil- 
ists make  their  headquarters  there,  so  that  their  commu- 
nications with  foreign  emissaries  may  be  more  direct. 
Moscow,  on  the  other  hand,  is  intensely  Asiatic  in  all  its 
characteristics  and  particularly  loyal  to  the  Greek  Church. 
This  fact  is  outwardly  indicated  by  the  first  sights  which 
strike  the  visitor  upon  entering  the  city,  for  rising  up  to 
immense  height,  like  a  beautiful  mirage,  are  hundreds  of 
glittering  domes,  surmounted  by  golden  crosses,  while 
others  counterfeit  the  blue  canopy  of  heaven.  There  are 
no  less  than  four  hundred  and  sixty-six  churches,  sixty- 
two  monasteries,  and  over  two  hundred  chapels  in  Mos- 
cow, all  of  which  are  sustained  in  a  style  of  magnificence 
found  nowhere  else  in  the  world.  These  princely  edi- 
fices, and  the  pious  reverence  of  her  population,  have 
caused  Moscow  to  be  culled  the  "Holy  City,"  and  so 
sacred  is  she  regarded  that  every  year  long  pilgrimages 
are  made  by  Russian  peasant  women  to  pay  their  devo- 
tions and  pray  before  her  holy  shrines.  In  this  respect 


EXILB  LIFE  IW  SIBERIA 


186  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM 

Moscow  is  to  Russians  what  Mecca  is  to  the  Mohamme- 
dan world. 

It  is  not  a  matter  for  surprise  therefore  that  there  is 
such  general  desire  among  the  people  for  the  Emperor's 
removal  from  European  influences,  and  his  complete  coa- 
lescence with  Russian  style  and  ideas  as  taught  by  the 
great  Vladimir.  Indeed,  there  is  a  large  party  in  Russia 
that  would.be  delighted  if  there  were  a  wall  around  the 
Empire  large  enough  to  forever  keep  out  everything 
European. 

In  the  foregoing  history  of  Nihilism  I  make  no  pre- 
tense of  presenting  a  complete  description  of  all  the  out- 
rages perpetrated  by  this  bloody  organization,  but  have 
rather  sought,  by  presenting  the  more  important  acts  and 
crimes  of  the  association,  to  indicate  its  strength,  coher- 
ency and  purpose  (if  it  may  be  said  Nihilism  has  any 
clearly  defined  purpose).  Anarchists  are  not  generally 
known  to  consider  cause  and  effect,  but  like  violent  ma- 
niacs, strike  in  obedience  to  a  distracted  mind,  having  the 
one  desire  to  kill,  ruin  or  subvert.  Nihilism  has  now 
grown  so  strong  that  no  one  can  compute  its  power  ;  no  one 
can  judge  of  Russia's  future,  but  all  may  well  prophesy, 
by  the  clouds  which  lower  so  bodingly  over  the  nation, 
that  there  is  a  Nemesis  ready  to  dash  out  of  the  elements, 
with  fire  and  sword,  at  the  Empire's  heart. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  187 


CHAPTER  X. 

IN  the  preparation  of  this  work  on  Nihilism  I  found 
many  difficulties  obtruding  upon  me  from  the  beginning, 
which  it  was  wholly  impossible  to  remove  or  reconcile  ; 
these  annoyances  arose  from  the  extremities  of  two  irrec- 
oncilable parties  whose  sympathies  seek  favor  from  all 
who  investigate  the  insurrectionary  causes  so  seriously 
disturbing  Eussia.  Having  been  admitted  to  Govern- 
ment circles  in  St.  Petersburg,  I  was  sought  to  be  the 
medium  through  which  the  Government  might  justify  its 
repressive  measures  and  demonstrate  the  wisdom  of  its 
laws ;  so  speciously  did  one  officer  of  the  Ministry  pre- 
sent to  me  the  causes  and  inordinate  assumptions  of 
Nihilism  that,  I  must  confess,  he  disposed  me  favorably 
to  his  conclusions,  which  might  have  influenced  me 
throughout,  in  my  investigations,  but  for  a  later  contact 
with  liberals  and  terrorists.  Through  an  introduction, 
which  it  would  not  be  just  to  explain,  I  was  received  con- 
fidentially by  several  leaders  in  the  revolutionary  move- 
ment, who  presented  to  me  their  grievances  and  demo- 
cratic needs  in  so  forcible,  if  not  convincing  a  manner,  as 
to  materially  change  the  opinions  incited  in  me  by 
the  Minister.  I  therefore  found  that  in  any  event  my 
work  must  meet  with  much  disfavor  in  Russia,  if  not 
subject  me  to  the  suspicion  of  preconceived  preju- 
dices. This  I  am  very  anxious  to  avoid,  and  that 
there  may  be  no  real  ground  for  such  a  charge,  in 
addition  to  recording  my  own  observations  and  results 
of  an  honest  investigation  of  Nihilism,  I  herewith  pre- 
sent an  ably  written  syllabus  of  the  leading  State  trials 
of  political  offenders  that  have  taken  place  in  Russia  dur- 
ing the  past  five  years.  The  author  of  this  most  inter- 


188  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

esting  chapter  is  a  distinguished  Russian  lady,  a  resident 
of  St.  Petersburg,  and  one  whose  liberal  ideas  recom- 
mend her  opinions  to  all  thinking  people.  She  belongs 
to  the  Liberal  Party,  but  prefers  that  her  name  should 
not  be  disclosed,  for  reasons  which  will  readily  appear  to 
any  one  who  has  read  the  preceding  chapters  on  Russian 
Nihilism : 

Of  all  countries  in  the  world,  Russia  can  of  late  years 
claim  the  sad  distinction  of  having  produced  in  greatest 
numbers  the  abnormal  growths  of  a  deeply  convulsed 
intellectual  soil.  The  well  known  "  Nihilists"  (christ- 
ened by  Tourguenieff  for  all  eternity),  the  boisterous, 
pugnacious,  ranting,  yet  talented  and  comparatively  harm- 
less boys  of  twenty  and  thirty  years  ago,  have  been  suc- 
ceeded by  another  and  far  more  dangerous  generation — 
boys  also,  most  of  them,  but  who  have  developed  the 
quiet,  dogged  resolution;  the  merciless,  unswerving  se- 
quence of  thought  and  act,  the  unreasoning  self-sacrifice 
which  lies  at  the  core  of  the  Russian  nature  when  power- 
fully aroused.  The  earlier  ones  contented  themselves 
with  general  fault-finding  (in  many  cases  with  but  too 
much  reason),  with  noisy  denunciations  of  everything 
and  everybody,  from  existing  social  principles  to  poetry 
and  ladies'  fancy-work,  with  sweeping  and  often  ludi- 
crously absurd  negations  of  all  that  is  not  positive  science 
or  material  improvement.  Not  so  the  latter,  the  so- 
called  "  socialists  " — for  that  name  begins  very  generally 
to  supersede  the  old  one.  Their  predecessors'  much-aired 
grievances,  instead  of  evaporating  in  more  or  less  violent 
talk,  have  with  them  settled  into  a  dark  purpose,  which 
they  pursue  literally  to  the  death — to  their  own  death 
most  frequently,  sometimes  also  to  that  of  their  selected 
victims.  They  take  the  risk  and  pay  the  forfeit  man- 
fully, stubbornly.  The  many  criminal  State-trials  of  the 


JSXILJi  LIFB  IN  »IBHRIA. 

last  five  years  have  amply  shown  that  Russia  has  been 
visited  by  a  virulent  paroxysm  of  that  form  of  political 
aberration  which  made  so  great  a  patriot  and  so  pure  a 
man  as  Mazzini  an  advocate  of  political  murder,  and 
armed  the  gentle  hand  of  the  romantic,  tender-souled 
boy  Sand  with  the  assassin's  dagger.  On  the  16th  of 
November,  1880,  the  execution  of  two  important  leaders 
of  the  deadly  secret  organization  called  "the  terroriz- 
ing fraction"  atoned  for  the  long  series  of  murderous 
attempts  against  the  Emperor's  person  which  followed 
the  assassination  of  Prince  Krapotkin  in  February,  1879. 

The  trial  which  preceded,  conducted  before  the  St. 
Petersburg  Military  Court,  was  on  so  unusually  large  a 
scale,  involved  so  many  points  and  persons,  and  resulted 
in  such  vast  and  important  revelations,  that  an  account 
of  the  judicial  proceedings  on  this  momentous  occasion 
may  prove  not  uninteresting  to  American  readers,  and 
may  shed  light  on  some  of  the  questions  concerning  which 
the  intelligent  curiosity  of  the  cultivated  public  of  this 
country  (Russia)  has  long  been  awakened. 

On  the  6th  of  November  sixteen  persons  were  brought 
to  trial  for  heavy  political  offenses  before  the  St.  Peters- 
burg Military  Court.  Great  and  unusual  precautions  had 
been  taken  to  insure  an  undisturbed  course  to  the  judicial 
proceedings.  The  general  public  were  not  admitted  ;  tick- 
ets were  distributed  ;  and  it  was  noticed  by  an  eye-witness 
that  although  the  audience  was  so  numerous  as  to  fill  the 
hall,  it  was  composed  of  persons  wearing  the  military  or 
civil  uniform,  there  being  present  only  four  persons  in  the 
ordinary  garb  of  private  gentlemen .  Altho  ugh  the  report- 
ers of  the  press  were  admitted,  the  several  dailies  and 
weeklies  had  been  notified  to  abstain  from  publishing  their 
own  reports  from  shorthand  notes  as  is  usual  in  such  cases, 
and  to  limit  themselves  to  copying  the  full-length  report 


190  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

which  would  appear  in  a  series  of  numbers  of  the  daily 
"  Government  Gazette."  The  sixteen  prisoners  entered 
the  court  escorted  each  by  two  gensdarmes,  and  took 
their  places  in  a  calm  and  dignified  manner.  In  spite  of 
great  differences  in  their  social  rank,  education,  even 
race  and  religion,  one  characteristic  feature  was  common 
to  all — they  were  very  young;  all,  with  one  exception, 
under  thirty,  one-half  under  twenty-five.  There  were 
three  women  in  the  number — girls  of  twenty-one,  twen- 
ty-two, and  twenty-three  years  of  age.  The  single 
exception  was  one  Mr.  Drigo,  aged  thirty-one,  a  land- 
holder and  business  man  of  good  standing,  who  was 
merely  an  accessory  to  the  revolutionary  party  with 
regard  to  certain  money  matters.  From  the  personal 
facts  and  antecedents  concerning  the  prisoners,  given  in 
curt  and  dry  phrase  by  the  Act  of  Accusation,  it  appears 
that  of  the  thirteen  men  one  was  a  Catholic,  of  Polish 
family  settled  in  Little  Russia,  and  two  were  Israelites  ; 
that  two  never  received  any  education  at  all,  and  seven 
did  not  complete  their  education,  but  left  the  University, 
or  the  Technological  Institute,  or  Teachers'  Seminary,  or 
other  schools  or  colleges,  in  the  first,  second,  or  third 
year  of  the  course.  Alexander  Kviatkovsky ,  aged  twenty- 
seven,  the  most  prominent  among  the  prisoners,  was  one 
of  these  ;  but  he  must  have  been  endowed  with  great  nat- 
ural parts  and  moral  powers.  From  the  first  moment  the 
general  attention  was  centered  on  him,'  and  his  personal 
appearance  is  thus  described  by  the  correspondent  of  the 
Augusburger  Zeitung :  ' (  Kviatkovsky  has  a  very  intel- 
ligent face ;  long  dark-blonde  hair  and  a  full  beard 
frame  a  set  of  features  expressive  of  great  energy  and 
power  of  will.  He  both  bears  himself  and  speaks  well 
and  with  ease."  He  immediately  and  naturally  assumed 
the  attitude  of  a  leader  among  his  companions — a  post- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  191 

tion  which  they  all  seemed  tacitly  to  acknowledge,  as 
though  from  long  and  habitual  deference,  and  to  which 
he  was  fully  entitled,  as  proven  by  disclosures  at  the 
trial.  It  was  remarked  that  although  he  appeared  to 
have  surrendered  himself  from  the  first,  and  with  the 
utmost  philosophy,  to  a  fate  against  which  he  knew  that 
not  the  ablest  defence  could  prevail,  he  was  unremittingly 
anxious  to  shield  his  followers,  and  never  missed  an  op- 
portunity of  taking  the  whole  blame  upon  himself  and 
exonerating  them  from  this  or  that  charge,  on  the  ground 
of  having  been  used  by  him  as  blind  tools,  and  kept  in 
ignorance  of  his  purposes. 

The  first  day  of  the  trial  was  almost  entirely  consumed 
by  the  reading  of  the  Act  of  Accusation.  That  this  docu- 
ment should  have  grown  to  so  unusual  a  bulk  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at,  since  it  covered  a  space  of  two  years, 
and  contained  a  detailed  relation  of  all  the  criminal  acts 
perpetrated  in  that  interval  by  members  of  the  ultra- 
socialistic  party,  in  which  all  prisoners  then  present  at 
the  bar  had  directly  and  personally  participated.  The 
Act  was  divided  under  ten  different  heads,  comprising 
the  following  offences :  Participation  in  the  murder  of 
Prince  Krapotkin,  the  Governor  of  Kharkoff,  in  Febru- 
ary, 1879  ;  in  Solovieff's  attempt  on  the  Emperor's  life 
in  April  of  the  same  year ;  in  the  socialistic-revolution- 
ary convention  which  took  place  at  Lipetsk  in  the  follow- 
ing June,  and  at  which  the  subsequent  attempts  were 
planned,  it  being  at  the  same  time  resolved  to  use  dyna- 
mite instead  of  ordinary  weapons  ;  in  the  ensuing  three- 
fold murderous  attempt  in  November,  1879,  by  means  of 
dynamite  mines  laid  under  railway  tracks  at  three  different 
places,  of  which  one  proved  useless  as  his  Majesty  changed 
his  route  at  the  last  moment,  another  took  no  effect  from 
unknown  causes,  probably  unskilful  management,  and  the 


192  RUiSIA^  NIHILISM  AND 

third  did  by  its  explosion  cause  the  destruction  of  the 
Imperial  train,  but  did  not  endanger  the  Emperor's  per- 
son, owing  to  his  having  passed  the  spot  a  few  moments 
before  in  an  ordinary  train  ;  in  the  laying  of  a  powerful 
dynamite  mine  under  one  of  the  apartments  in  the  Win- 
ter Palace,  resulting  in  the  terrible  explosion  of  the  17th 
of  February,  1880,  which  caused  the  loss  of  eleven  lives, 
and  more  or  less  severely  injured  fifty-six  persons.  Fur- 
thermore, several  of  the  prisoners  were  accused  of  organ- 
izing and  entertaining  an  active  secret  press  in  the  capi- 
tal, for  the  purpose  of  printing  and  spreading  abroad 
revolutionary  proclamations,  flying  numbers  of  seditious 
and  terroristic  papers,  as  also  of  forging  passports  and 
other  documents  ;  the  same  prisoners  being  moreover  ac- 
cused of  having  offered  armed  resistance  to  the  police, 
who  surprised  them  in  their  hiding-place  with  the  press 
in  full  activity.  The  prisoner  Presniakoff  was  charged 
besides  with  having  fired  at  two  persons  who  aided  a  dis- 
guised policeman  in  arresting  him  on  one  of -the  public 
streets,  wounding  both  and  causing  the  death  of  one. 
Lastly,  all  the  prisoners  were  "accused  of  belonging  to 
the  secret  society  of  the  socialistic-revolutionary  party, 
whose  object  is,  by  sedition  and  violence,  to  subvert  the 
State  institutions  and  social  order,  and  which  has  mani- 
fested its  existence  by  a  long  series  of  the  heaviest  politi- 
cal offences."  They  were  also  all  charged,  with  three 
exceptions,  with  having  lived  under  numerous  assumed 
names,  supporting  their  aliases  by  forged  passports  and 
other  documents  ;  while  the  prisoner  Drigo  was  accused 
of  having  supplied  the  socialistic-revolutionary  party  with 
the  funds  necessary  for  carrying  out  their  very  expensive 
undertakings  and  machinations. 

The  question  of  funds  is  one  which  has  considerably 
puzzled  public  curiosity.     People  cannot  carry  on  costly 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

mining-works  in  different  parts  of  the  country  and  secret 
publishing  on  a  large  scale,  travel  at  the  shortest  notice 
from  end  to  end  of  so  vast  an  empire,  hire  and  buy 
houses  to  conspire  and  work  in,  and  maintain  a  large 
number  of  subaltern  agents,  mostly  needy  young  men, 
who  in  devoting  their  time  and  energies  to  "the  work" 
give  up  their  only  chance  of  earning  even  a  precarious 
livelihood, — people  cannot  do  all  this  without  spending 
large  sums  of  money ;  and  where  does  the  money  come 
from  ? — for  it  is  a  curious  but  well-established  fact,  that 
men  as  a  rule  are  more  lavish  of  their  lives  than  of  their 
purses.  The  accusation  against  Mr.  Drigo  answers  this 
question  very  fully  and  very  strikingly ;  and  as  he 
pleaded  guilty,  with  only  a  distinction  of  degree  in  the 
offense,  and  his  case,  therefore,  presented  no  difficulty  or 
complication,  it  may  as  well  be  disposed  of  now,  at  this 
early  stage  of  the  proceedings. 

Though  there  may  have  been  small  contributions  for 
revolutionary  purposes  from  the  less  needy  members  of 
the  party,  it  is  now  proved  that  the  great  bulk  of  the  ex- 
pended funds  were  derived  from  the  private  fortune  of 
Demitri  Lizogoub,  a  prominent  leader  executed  in 
August,  1879.  This  gentleman,  judging  from  no  other 
data  but  those  supplied  by  the  Act  of  Accusation,  the 
speech  of  the  counsel  for  the  Crown,  and  the  few  simple 
remarks  offered  by  Drigo  in  his  own  defence,  appears  to 
have  been  by  no  means  an  ordinary  character.  Having 
early  come  into  an  inheritance  consisting  of  landed  prop- 
erty to  the  amount  of  something  over  one  hundred  and 
eighty-seven  thousand  roubles  (exactly  half  of  that  sum 
in  dollars,  at  the  present  low  rate  of  exchange),  as  was 
testified  by  his  brothers  at  his  trial,  he  immediately  be- 
gan quietly  to.  turn  every  acre  into  money,  which  he  con- 
sistently applied  to  the  uses  of  "  the  party,"  limiting  hiat 


194  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

personal  expenditure  to  the  trifling  sum  of  five  hundred 
roubles  a  year.  He  evidently  looked  on  his  wealth  as  a 
sacred  deposit,  of  which  he  was  but  the  steward,  in  con- 
science bound  to  husband  it  for  the  furtherance  of  "  the 
good  cause,"  allotting  to  himself  only  the  merest  pit- 
tance necessary  for  actually  supporting  life.  So  thor- 
oughly did  he  carry  out  his  sternly-planned  self-denial, 
that  at  the  time  of  his  death  barely  thirty  thousand 
roubles  could  be  found  of  his  considerable  patrimony. 
Eepeatedly  implicated  in  political  machinations,  and  once 
already  placed  under  temporary  arrest,  Lizogoub  found 
it  unsafe  to  remit  the  required  sums  directly  and  in  his 
own  person  to  the  respective  agents,  as  also  to  attend 
himself  to  the  final  liquidation  of  his  still  remaining  es- 
tates,— a  measure  which  became  doubly  urgent  after  he 
was  again  and  definitely  arrested  in  1878.  Some  time 
before  this  event,  he  had  placed  his  entire  fortune,  by 
means  of  full  powers  of  attorney,  in  the  hands  of  his 
neighbor  and  early  friend,  Vladimir  Drigo,  and  used  to 
give  him  private  directions  as  to  the  payment  of  more  or 
less  considerable  sums,  from  one  hundred  roubles  to  one 
thousand  and  upward,  and  at  different  times  to  sundry 
individuals  who  proved  to  be  revolutionary  agents  of  the 
deepest  dye.  Even  from  his  prison  in  Odessa  Lizogoub 
managed,  by  contrivances  which  have  not  been  found  out 
to  this  day,  and  which  seem  to  imply  connivance  from 
quarters  where  such  would  least  be  looked  for,  to  keep 
up  an  active  correspondence  in  short  notes  with  his  po- 
litical friends  and  Drigo,  who  continued  to  carry  out  his 
orders  with  respect  to  further  payments  out  of  his  prop- 
erty. One  of  these  notes,  bearing  the  postscript,  pathetic 
in  its  simplicity,  "  /  trust  you,"  came  into  the  hands  of 
justice,  and  was  shown  to  Lizogoub' s  two  brothers,  who 
recognized  it  as  being  in  their  brother  Demitri's  hand- 


EXILE  LIFE  Iff  SIBERIA.  195 

Writing.  Drigo  meanwhile,  urged  by  his  friendship  for 
the  prisoner,  worked  hard  and  anxiously  to  accomplish 
the  final  liquidation, — partly  by  effecting  sales  in  his  own 
name,  partly  by  transferring  large  sums  into  his  own 
hands  and  those  of  other  trusty  friends,  as  the  only  way 
of  securing  means  of  existence  to  Lizogoub  in  the  future, 
no  more  tragical  issue  of  his  trial  being  at  first  antici- 
pated than  a  rigorous  banishment.  But  a  judicial  sen- 
tence is  usually  accompanied  by  degradation  ;  that  is  to 
say,  the  condemned  person  is  stripped  of  his  rank  and  all 
civil  rights  and  privileges  thereto  pertaining,  and  dis- 
abled from  holding  property,  which,  if  he  is  in  possession 
of  any,  is  either  confiscated  to  the  Crown  or  passes  to  his 
heirs  as  though  he  were  dead,  as  the  sentence  may  be. 
The  most  ordinary  mode  of  eluding  this  severe  clause, 
which  would  leave  a  condemned  prisoner  penniless,  is  by 
fictitious  mortgages  and  bills,  the  friendly  holders  of 
which  foreclose  at  a  given  moment,,  and  thus  rescue  the 
prisoner's  real  estate  or  movables  from  the  law,  and 
either  apply  the  income  to  his  needs,  or,  by  liquidation, 
secure  for  him  a  capital.  This  operation  Drigo  was  anx- 
ious to  accomplish  in  Lizogoub' s  behalf,  but  the  fatal  ter- 
mination of  his  friend's  career  rendered  further  efforts 
unnecessary  ;  and,  besides,  not  much  of  the  fortune  was 
left,  as  has  been  seen.  From  the  moment  of  Lizogoub's 
death,  Drigo' s  connection  with  "the  party"  entirely 
ceased,  and  none  of  its  members  received  from  him  any 
more  pecuniary  assistance.  The  latter  fact  was  duly  no- 
ticed in  the  Act  of  Accusation  as  an  extenuating  circum- 
stance. He  was  only  charged  with  having  supplied  cer- 
tain persons  with  funds,  not  his  own  indeed,  but  which 
he  knew  would  be  used  for  illegal  purposes.  The  case 
against  him  was  very  fairly  stated  thus:  "  The  person 
who  gave  the  11101103^  might  be  ignorant  of  the  meditated 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

crimes  for*  the  perpetration  of  which  it  was  raised,  but  it 
could  hot  be  unknown  to  him  that  the  supplies  which 
passed  through  his  hands  were  destined  for  revolutionary 
purposes."  Drigo  did  not  deny  the  fact  of  having  paid 
sums  of  money  to  sundry  persons,  strangers  to  him,  by 
Lizogoub's  order  ;  but  pleaded  that,  placed  as  he  was,  he 
could  not  act  differently  ;  nor  did  he  admit  having  any 
knowledge  whatever  of  their  illegal  character.  He  abso- 
lutely denied  ever  having  belonged  to  the  revolutionary 
party  himself,  a  denial  borne  out  by  his  antecedents, 
which  showed  him  to  have  been  a  model  landlord,  looked 
up  to  by  all  his  neighbors,  and  never  implicated  in  any 
political  troubles  before  he  consented  to  take  on  himself 
the  full  management  of  Lizogoub's  property.  "  I  was 
guided  in  my  actions  solely  by  my  friendship  to  Lizo- 
goub  ;  and  if  friendship  constitutes  a  political  offense,  in 
that  case  I  must  plead  guilty."  With  these  simple  words 
he  closed  his  brief  defence.  The  sentence  passed  against 
Drigo  was,  in  consideration  of  his  exceptional  position 
and  honorable  character,  as  mild  as  could  be  expected, — 
degradation  and  simple  banishment  to  the  Government  of 
Tomsk,  in  Western  Siberia. 

When,  after  the  Act  of  Accusation  had  been  read, 
the  prisoners  were  asked  in  the  usual  form  whether  they 
pleaded  guilty  or  not  guilty,  they  did  not  attempt  una- 
vailing denial ;  all,  with  one  exception,  pleaded  guilty  in 
the  main,  but  with  certain  qualifications  and  more  or  less 
nice  distinctions  as  to  details,  shadings  of  opinion  or  in- 
tention. Some,  while  avowing  that  they  belonged  to  the 
socialistic-revolutionary  party,  denied  all  connection  with 
that  fraction  of  it  which  advocated  terrorization.  One 
said  :  "  I  admit  that  I  am  a  socialist,  but  I  am  not  a  rev- 
olutionist." Kviatkovsky  and  one  other  allowed  that  they 
had  taken  part  in  the  socialistic  convention  at  Lipetsk, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  1D7 

but  would  not  concede  that  the  ensuing  attempts  gainst  the 
Czar's  person  had  been  there  resolved  upon,  except  the- 
oretically and  conditionally  :  "Should  certain  contingencies 
take  place,  it  was  to  be  done  ;  should  they  not,  it  might  be 
left  undone."  "  It  was  decided,"  explained  his  compan- 
ion, "to  repeat  the  attempts,  should  the  Government  per- 
sist in  the  line  of  conduct  it'  had  pursued  towards  the 
*  party'  and  the  people.  But  the  Convention  did  not 
discuss  the  questions  as  to  how  it  was  to  be  done,  by 
whom,  and  under  what  circumstances;  so  there  was  no 
talk  of  mining  and  dynamite." 

At  the  preliminary  examinations  the  prisoners  had 
made  confessions  even  more  ample  than  they  appeared 
willing  to  indorse  before  the  court.  They  may  have  been 
advised  by  their  counsel  not  to  criminate  themselves  un- 
warily, nor  to  make  unnecessary  admissions.  Still,  on 
the  whole,  denial  was  certainly  not  the  line  of  defence 
which  they  adopted.  Among  the  witnesses  who  would 
be  summoned  to  confront  them  they  knew  that  one  was  to 
be  brought  forward  whose  deposition  would  be  evidence 
most  damning  and  conclusive  against  them — a  witness 
from  the  dead  as  it  were,  and  one  of  their  own  number. 
Goldenberg,  an  Israelite  aged  twenty-four,  the  mur- 
derer of  Prince  Krapotkin,  did  not  take  his  place  on  the 
prisoners'  benches  with  his  sixteen  companions,  being 
shortly  reported  in  the  Act  of  Accusation  to  "have 
died  in  the  fortress,  on  the  29th  of  July,  1880."  His 
act  and  his  fate  are  not  the  least  striking  feature  of 
this  extraordinary  trial.  He  wrote  and  signed  a  relation, 
most  full  and  elaborate,  not  only  of  his  own  doings  in  the 
service  of  the  revolutionary  party,  but  of  all  those  of  his 
fellow-conspirators  in  which  he  had  borne  a  part,  or  of 
which  he  had  a  knowledge  ;  he  laid  bare  all  that  was 
known  to  him  of  the  secret  central  organization  called 
13 


198  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

"  the  directing  and  the  executive  committees;"  he  left 
out  no  detail,  no  name.  Then — he  committed  suicide! 
Were  it  not  for  this  last  circumstance  he  would  stand 
branded  as  the  blackest  of  traitors,  and  we  should  be 
disposed  to  yield  but  scanty  credence  or  sympathy  to  the 
long  preface  in  which  he  expounds  his  motives  and  aims, 
even  though  it  contains  much  weighty  reasoning,  much 
deep,  apparently  genuine  feeling  awakened  by  the  sor- 
rowful retrospect  and  gloomy  anticipations  natural  to  a 
spirit  sobered  by  long  confinement.  As  it  is,  we  may  at 
least  suspend  our  judgment,  give  the  unfortunate  youth 
credit  for  sincerity,  and  wish  that  the  sad  reflections 
wrung  from  him  by  suffering  and  despondency  should 
gain  ground  among  his  former  associates,  who  would 
possibly  cease  from  their  murderous  machinations  with 
very  weariness,  if  they  could  but  once  become  convinced 
that  by  persisting  in  them  they  only  disgrace  and  undo 
the  cause  which  they  seek  to  uphold. 

Goldenberg  begins  by  professing  himself  a  member 
not  only  of  the  socialistic-revolutionary  party,  but  of 
that  fraction  of  the  same  which  under  the  denomination 
of  "  disorganizes  "  or  "  terrorists  "  has  undertaken  to 
subvert  the  whole  now  .subsisting  order  of  things,  and  to 
compel  the  Government,  by  sheer  force  of  intimidation, 
to  desist  from  its  entire  political  course,  and  especially 
the  repressive  measures  which  it  has  long  pursued  against 
such  of  the  association  as  fell  into  its  hands.  "  I  am  an 
advocate  of  political  murders,"  he  adds,  "in  so  far  as 
they  are  substitutes  for  free  speech,  as  they  undermine 
the  public  confidence  in  the  government  and  its  organi- 
zation, and  as  a  given  agent  of  the  government  has 
deserved  his  doom — that  is,  in  so  far  as  he  is  obnoxious 
to  the  socialistic  party."  Then,  after  touching  shortly 
on  the  grounds  which  made  him  proclaim  himself  the 
assassin  of  Prince  Krapotkin,  he  goes  on  : 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  199 

"  A  long  interval  of  time  has  elapsed  since  then Solitary  con- 
finement, like  every  evil  thing  in  the  world,  has  its  good  side,  which  consists 
in  enabling  a  man  to  think,  and  think  freely,  unhindered  and  unswayed  by  the 
course  of  events.  I  have  done  so,  and  found  that  after  traveling  so  arduous 
and  bloody  a  road  nothing  is  done  anywhere,  not  among  the  people,  not 
among  society,  not  among  the  youth  of  the  land,  and  that  the  struggle  still 
continues — a  most  wearing  struggle  :  men  perish,  and  perish  without  end,  in 
dungeons,  in  Eastern  Siberia,  lastly  on  gibbets.  I  especially  centered  my 
thoughts  on  the  proceedings  of  the  terrorists,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
they  had  entered  on  a  mistaken  course  ;  that  while  they  strive  with  their 
whole  souls,  with  all  their  might,  for  the  most  natural  and  undoubted  human 
right — that  of  political  liberty — they  have  not  chosen  the  right  means  to 
attain  it.  I  found  that  political  murders  not  only  had  not  brought  us  nearer 
to  that  better  state  of  things  for  which  we  all  long,  but  had  on  the  contrary 
made  it  incumbent  on  the  Government  to  take  extreme  measures  against  us  ; 
that  it  is  owing  to  that  same  theory  of  political  murder  we  have  had  the  mis- 
fortune of  seeing  twenty  gibbets  raised  in  our  midst,  and  that  to  it  we  are 
indebted  for  the  dreadful  reaction  which  lies  with  crushing  weight  on  all 
alike.  I  reflected  that  the  socialists  ought  to  have  known  and  remembered 
that  the  Government  is  able  to  put  forth  the  same  means,  but  with  an  amount 
of  might  which  must  destroy  all  that  crosses  its  path.  .  .  .  Such  were 
some  of  the  cheerless  conclusions  to  which  I  came  after  much  thinking.  Of 
course,  I  might  have  persisted  in  my  former  convictions.  I  might  have  gone 
on  leading  men  to  death,  and  have  calmly  died  myself  on  the  gibbet,  had  I 
known  that  I  should  be  the  final  expiatory  victim,  that  my  death  would  close 
this  sad  and  horrible  period  of  our  social  development.  But  the  thought  that 
my  death-sentence  would  not  be  the  last,  that  more  would  follow  and  inevi- 
tably call  forth  new  reprisals,  which  in  their  turn  would  be  visited  on  the  party 
by  still  severer  measures,  and  thus  the  number  of  the  victims  would  go  on  in- 
creasing, until  the  Government  would  after  all  come  out  victor  from  the 
unequal  conflict,  from  which  it  never  can  desist  as  long  as  the  entire  move 
ment  is  not  put  down — this  thought  filled  me  with  inexpressible  dread.  .  .  . 
I  stand  aghast  at  the  certainty  that  persecution  must  at  last  overcome,  sup- 
press for  a  long  time,  the  general  active  stir  so  healthful  in  itself  in  favor  of 
political  reform,  and  that  we  shall  then  bitterly  regret  having  manifested  our 
activity  in  so  harsh  a  form  as  to  drag  to  perdition  numbers  of  unheeded  vic- 
tims." 

There  is  nothing  in  all  this  that  the  most  earnest, 
upright  lover  of  his  country  could  not  endorse  ;  no  sound 
head,  no  feeling  heart,  but  must  deplore  with  the  solitary, 
brooding  prisoner  the  fatal  excesses  which  he  denounces, 
and  wish  that  all  his  associates  might  come  to  the  same 
tardy,  dearly-bought  insight.  Can  we  refuse  him  our 


200  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

sympathy  when  he  expresses  a  passionate  desire  "to  put 
an  end  to  all  these  evils,  to  assist  in  bringing  about  a 
speedy  transition  to  another  and  better  state  of  things, 
to  save  many  from  the  death-sentence  impending  over 
them?"  But  when  he  tells  us  by  what  means  he  intends 
to  achieve  all  this,  we  look  at  each  other  in  puzzled  be- 
wilderment :  can  he  seriously  think  he  will  save  his 
friends  by  turning  informer  against  them?  Does  he 
blind  himself  to  the  ugly  word  by  the  pompous  phrase- 
ology in  which  he  clothes  it? 

"  I  have  nerved  myself  to  a  most  dire  and  terrible  act;  I  have  resolved  to 
employ  a  remedy  which  makes  my  veins  throb  painfully,  and  my  eyes  over- 
flow with  burning  tears.  I  have  resolved  to  repress  within  myself  all  feeling 
of  either  enmity  or  affection,  and  to  perform  another  great  act  of  self-denial 
for  the  good  of  our  young  men,  of  our  society,  of  our  beloved  Russia.  I  have 
resolved  to  lay  open  the  entire  organization,  all  that  is  known  to  me,  as  a 
preventive  against  the  dreadful  future  which  awaits  us,  against  a  whole  series 
of  executions  and  other  repressive  measures." 

It  would  certainly  be  a  satisfaction  to  be  quite  sure  that 
the  converted  terrorist  meant  well,  and  if  he  did  commit 
suicide  after  completing  his  revelation  there  would  be 
little  doubt  of  his  sincerity.  Still,  the  connection  be- 
tween the  end  which  he  proposes  to  himself  and  the 
means  which  he  takes  towards  it  is  very  difficult  to  estab- 
lish— so  much  so  that  there  have  not  been  wanting  scep- 
tics who  entirely  disbelieved  in  his  death,  and  considered 
the  report  only  as  a  clever  mise  en  scene  to  avoid  his  per- 
sonal appearance  in  the  witness-box  and  a  possible  reac- 
tion of  feeling, 'or  simply  to  shield  him  from  the  ven- 
geance of  the  betrayed.  I  have  heard  many  persons  says  : 

"  Goldenberg  is  fast  becoming  the  hero  of  a  cycle  of  legends.  .  .  .  Some 
believe  he  is  not  dead  at  all,  but  is  only  kept  in  concealment ;  and  that  he 
suffered  himself  to  be  moved  to  a  full  confession  by  the  promise  of  a  very 
large  sum  of  money  and  impunity.  Many  persons  in  the  best  circles  share 
the  belief  that  he  is  alive." 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  201 

Yet  his  suicide  was  formally  announced  in  the  Narod- 
naya  Volia,  the  secret  revolutionary  organ. 

Meanwhile,  and  whatever  be  the  true  solution  of  this 
obscure  and  distressing  point,  Goldenberg's  deposition, 
which  occupies  a  great  many  newspaper  columns,  is  one 
of  the  most  extraordinary,  the  most  thrilling  documents 
which  it  is  possible  to  read.  Not  the  most  exciting 
memoirs  penned  by  a  gifted  hand  in  stirring  times,  not 
those  of  Cellini  himself,  can  surpass  in  fascination  this 
unadorned,  unimpassioned  narrative.  We  need  only  fol- 
low its  consecutive  statements,  but  slightly  commented 
on  or  corrected  in  the  subsequent  answers  of  the  prison- 
ers, the  final  speeches  for  the  accusation  or  the  defence, 
to  see  the  whole  strange  drama  enacted  before  our  eyes, 
appalling  in  its  very  homeliness  and  in  its  utterly  com- 
monplace details.  The  whole  thing  looks  so  familiar  and 
at  the  same  time  so  wildly  unreal,  that  we  are  tempted  to 
rub  our  eyes  and  ask,  where  are  we?  Are  these  things 
done  in  the  latter  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century?  Are 
these  the  men — the  boys — whom  we  have  sympathized 
with  and  soothed  in  their  grievances,  their  aspirations, 
their  alternations  of  despondency  or  exaltation? 

Here  is  a  circle  of  young  people,  with  nice,  homelike 
names,  gathered  round  a  tea-table  with  its  hissing  samo- 
var— a  scene-  which  every  Eussian  woman  has  presided 
over  a  hundred  times.  The  young  men  are  mostly  stu- 
dents of  the  universities  of  Kieff  or  Kharkoff  ;  the  girls 
belong  to  the  same  class  of  unquiet  spirits.  They  talk 
much  and  loudly,  their  animated  gestures  and  excited 
faces  show  that  they  are  discussing  one  of  those  burning 
questions  du  jour  which  in  a  certain  circle  turn  every  so- 
cial gathering  into  a  pandemonium  on  a  small  scale, 
where  through  dense  clouds  of  cheap  cigarette-smoke 
eyes  flash,  arms  are  flourished,  voices  ring,  sharply  iso- 


202  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

lated  or  blended  into  a  general  din  ;  where  there  is  every- 
body to  speak  and  no  one  to  listen.  We  all  have  assisted 
at  some  of  these  unparliamentary  debates,  where  the 
newly-brewed  thought  revels  in  ungovernable  fermenta- 
tion. But  hark  !  the  theme  is  somewhat  startling:  it  is 
a  question  of  life  or  death  which  is  being  canvassed. 
Judgment  is  being  passed  on  the  governor,  Prince  Krap- 
otkin,  whose  brutal  ill-treatment  of  the  students — both  at 
their  last  mass-meeting,  when  a  troop  of  Cossacks  rode 
into  the  midst  of  them  plying  their  nagaikas  (horsewhips) 
right  and  left,  and  later  in  the  prison  to  which  many 
were  summarily  consigned — calls  for  retaliation.  And 
now  a  newly-arrived  guest  addresses  the  circle,  ?,nd  is 
listened  to  as  one  whose  word  claims  authority.  Golden- 
berg  writes : 

"  I  wished  to  alleviate  the  lot  of  the  prisoners,  and  also  to  take  vengeance 
on  Prince  Krapotkin,  as  the  cause  of  their  sufferings.  I  came  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  the  best  means  to  compass  both  these  ends  would  be  to  kill 
him,  as  a  sure  way  to  turn  the  attention  of  both  Government  and  public  to 
the  fate  of  political  prisoners  in  general.  ...  I  did  not  at  once  declare 
my  own  determination  to  do  the  deed,  but  only  expressed  my  opinion  that 
such  a  measure  ought  to  be  taken  against  him — an  opinion  to  which  all  re- 
sponded approvingly.  There  was  much  discussion  concerning  the  manner 
in  which  it  should  be  done,"  so  as  more  forcibly  to  influence  the  public.  I 
and*  two  others  (one  a  woman)  were  for  an  open  act,  but  the  majority  were  in 
favor  of  secret  assassination.  .  .  .  The  question  was  decided  in  this 
sense,  much  against  my  earnest  wish." 

This  was  in  the  last  days  of  December,  1878.  From 
that  time  to  the  21st  of  February  following  Golden  berg, 
faithfully  aided  by  a  crowd  of  associates — some  of  whom 
he  knew  only  under  their  assumed  names,  since  one  and 
all  they  lived  with  forged  or  borrowed  passports — coolly 
prepared  the  execution  of  the  decree.  Not  less  than 
twenty  persons  are  named  as  having  in  different  ways  as- 
sisted him.  One  of  them,  Goldenberg's  inseparable 
attendant,  entreated  his  friend  to  yield  to  him  the  honor 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  203 

of  the  execution  ;  'k  but  I  told  him  and  Zoubkavsky  that 
I  would  shoot  the  man  who  should  interfere  with  me  and 
kill  the  prince  in  my  stead."  This  young  zealot  was 
Kobyliansky,  one  of  "the  sixteen,"  then  not  quite 
twenty.  "  The  little  Pole,"  as  he  was  called  with  some 
degree  of  contemptuous  pity,  afterward  boasted  to  f riends 
at  a  distance  from  Kharkoff  that  he  was  the  murderer, 
but  at  the  trial  denied  having  even  had  any  knowledge  of 
the  contemplated  deed,  and  altogether  was  the  only  one 
of  the  party  who  bore  himself  in  a  way  which  showed 
him  to  be  a  poor  feeble-minded  creature.  The  two  con- 
spirators dogged  the  Governor  for  weeks,  and  more  than 
one  opportunity  was  missed  ;  one  day  a  fog  made  it  too 
uncertain  to  fire,  another  day  the  distance  was  too  great ; 
one  evening  they  met  him  in  the  theatre,  "  but  he  was 
with  his  wife  and  daughter,  and  they  did  not  wish  to  en- 
danger them."  At  length,  on  the  21st  of  February,  as 
Prince  Krapotkin  was  returning  home  alone  between  nine 
and  ten  at  night,  Goldenberg,  who  was  pacing  the  side- 
walk before  his  house,  ran  up  to  the  carriage,  fired  a 
well-aimed  shot  through  the  open  window,  and  disap- 
peared in  the  darkness.  Favored  by  the  night  and 
watched  over  by  friends,  he  had  no  difficulty  in  escaping 
from  the  city.  The  death  of  the  victim  ensued  only  a 
week  later. 

The  scene  changes  to  St.  Petersburg.     We  find  there 

O  O 

Goldenberg,  safe  and  undaunted,  busily  planning  a  more 
terrible  sequel  to  his  first  successful  crime,  and  sur- 
rounded by  a  numerous  set  of  new  acquaintances  and  as- 
sociates, of  whom  he  distinctly  states  that  he  did  not 
know  the  real  name  of  one.  "The  little  Pole"  still 
hovers  admiringly  round  him,  with  unabated  ardor.  But 
his  most  constant  companion  is  a  young  man  lately  ar- 


204  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

rived  from  a  distant  province,  with  a  deep-set  purpose 
in  his  heart.  The  three  frequently  visited  together  a 
shooting-gallery,  where  the  new-comer  assiduously  prac- 
tised his  eye  and  hand.  What  his  purpose  was  did  not 
long  remain  a  secret.  At  a  meeting  held  with  amazing 
recklessness,  almost  openly  and  within  general  hearing, 
at  a  much-frequented  tavern  in  one  of  the  most  crowded 
streets,  that  purpose  was  declared  and  discussed.  The 
question  propounded  was  the  expediency  of  a  decisive  at- 
tempt on  the  Czar's  life,  to  be  undertaken  by  a  man  of 
strong  nerve  and  unswerving  resolution.  There  was  no 
lack  of  volunteers.  Goldenberg  coolly  proposed  him- 
self, on  the  ground  that  he  had  been  tried  and  had  noth- 
ing to  lose, — his  life  being  already  forfeited  by  reason  of 
one  murder.  His  offer  was  rejected  on  account  of  his 
Hebrew  nationality  and  religion,  for  fear  that  so  desper- 
ate a  deed  might  throw  too  great  an  odium  on  his  entire 
race,  since  Christian  communities  have  ever  been  but  too 
prone  to  hold  it  collectively  responsible  for  offences  com- 
mitted by  individuals  belonging  to  it.  "  The  little  Pole/' 
baffled  in  his  ambition  at  Kharkoff ,  was  anxious  to  obtain 
the  far  higher  distinction  of  laying  low  so  much  more 
exalted  a  head.  But  he  was  set  aside  at  once  as  entirely 
unfit  for  so  responsible  and  terrible  a  mission.  His  being 
a  Pole  was  judged  a  sufficient  objection,  since  the  conspir- 
ators did  not  wish  the  regicide  to  be  attributed  to  national 
animosity.  None  but  a  Russian  hand  should  be  raised 
against  the  head  of  the  Russian  people,  that  the  world, 
well  aware  how  deeply  the  almost  religious  feeling  of  loy- 
alty is  rooted  in  every  Russian  breast,  might  from  the 
enormity  of  the  deed  judge  of  the  magnitude  of  the  pro- 
vocation and  the  deadliness  of  the  resolve.  These  youth- 
ful enthusiasts  seem  to  have  approached  this  culminating 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  205 

act  of  their  political  creed  with  a  certain  degree  of  awe, 
somewhat  in  the  spirit  of  Brutus  : — 

"  Let  us  be  sacrificers,  but  not  butchers.     .     .     . 

Alas! 

Caesar  must  bleed  for  it !     And,  gentle  friends, 
Let's  kill  him  boldly,  not  wrathfully.     ... 

This  shall  make 

Our  purpose  necessary  and  not  envious, 
Which,  so  appearing  to  the  common  eyes, 
We  shall  be  called  purgers,  not  murderers." 

At  last  Solovieff,  the  new  arrival,  declared  the  debate 
useless,  since  he  was  determined  to  strike  the  blow  him- 
self, whether  empowered  to  it  or  not,  having  come  from 
Saratoff  for  no  other  purpose.  He  added  ihat  this  re- 
solve had  originated  in  his  mind  independently  of  any  in- 
stigation, and  that  he  would  yield  the  execution  to  no 
other  person;  that  should  "the  party"  decide  to  ad- 
journ or  forego  it,  he  would  separate  himself  from  them 
and  act  on  his  own  responsibility.  ' '  It  was  his  idee  fixe,' ' 
said  Kviatkovsky ,  when  questioned  on  the  subject.  Noth- 
ing now  remained  but  to  settle  questions  of  preliminaries 
and  details,  of  which  the  most  urgent  was  to  give  secret 
warning  to  "the  illegal  parties" — as  they  are  expres- 
sively named  from  the  fact  of  their  living  illegally  under 
assumed  names  and  with  false  papers — to  leave  the  city 
at  once,  so  as  to  involve  as  few  persons  as  possible  in  the 
coming  catastrophe.  Tt  is  well  known  that  the  meditated 
attempt  was  committed  by  Solovieff  on  the  14th  of 
April  ;  that  he  failed,  and  paid  for  his  fanaticism  with 
his  life. 

But  by  far  the  most  thrilling  pages  in  Goldenberg's 
narrative  are  those  in  which  he  describes,  with  the  life- 
like vividness  of  an  eyewitness,  the  mining  of  the  rail- 
way track  on  the  outskirts  of  Moscow,  which  ended  in 
the  explosion  of  the  1st  of  December.  At  the  convention 


206  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANT) 

held  by  the  leaders  of  the  socialistic  party  at  Lipetsk  in 
the  preceding  June,  and  whose  doings  and  resolutions  de- 
serve a  separate  paragraph,  the  regicide  question  had 
been  amply  discussed.  It  was  settled  in  the  affirmative. 
Whether  only  "  theoretically  and  conditionally"  or  in  a 
definite  form,  as  to  time  and  place,  ways  and  means,  is 
of  no  material  importance.  Enough  that  very  soon  after 
the  convention  separated,  several  of  its  most  prominent 
members,  with  a  dogged  stubbornness  of  purpose  and  an 
almost  incredible  recklessness  of  danger  and  detection, 
set  to  work  to  carry  out  the  very  elaborate  preparations 
for  a  great  final  and,  as  they  confidently  imagined,  uner- 
ring coup.  The  revolver  was  discarded  for  a  surer  and 
even  more  deadly  agent — dynamite.  A  sufficient  quan- 
tity— three  pouds,  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds 
— was  secretly  manufactured  in  St.  Petersburg  and  sent 
off  to  Moscow  under  the  care  of  two  passengers  who  took 
it  as  a  favor  with  their  own  luggage,  never  suspecting 
that  the  box  labelled  "  Crockery"  contained  anything 
else,  and  on  arriving  in  Moscow  left  it,  as  directed,  in  the 
luggage-room  "  till  called  for  "  by  the  person  to  whom 
they  had  been  requested  to  hand  over  the  check.  Three 
pouds  more  were  taken  to  Kharkoff  by  two  of  the  con- 
spirators, who  carried  it  simply  in  their  trunk.  This 
trunk  they  kept  for  some  time  at  their  hotel,  then  had  it 
conveyed  first  to  the  lodgings  of  a  student,  and  lastly  to 
those  of  a  lady  friend,  both  of  whom  belonged  to  "  the 
party,"  yet  were  not  informed  of  the  contents  of  the 
trunk,  part  of  which  was  afterward  carried  as  ignorantly 
by  a  third  person  to  Odessa,  and  there  safely  received. 
That  no  accident  should  ever  have  happened  in  all  these 
peregrinations  seems  almost  miraculous.  But  the  manu- 
facturing and  transporting  of  dynamite  was  the  least  part 
of  the  undertaking.  Much  the  most  difficult  task  was 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  207 

the  long  and  wearisome  mining  process,  the  difficulty 
being  greatly  increased  by  the  inexperience  of  the  labor- 
ers, the  scarcity  and  imperfection  of  the  tools,  and  the 
necessity  of  submitting  to  countless  discomforts  in  order 
to  preserve  the  silence  and  outward  tranquillity  indispen- 
sable to  avoid  a  detection  always  imminent  at  the  best. 
Nor  would  it  have  been  possible  to  achieve  even  the  pre- 
liminaries without  the  assistance  of  the  female  associates, 
an  assistance  which  was  rendered  with  unremitting  cheer- 
fulness, unflagging  presence  of  mind,  and  absolute  self- 
devotion.  Goldenberg  shared  for  a  time  the  exciting 
life  and  labors  of  his  Moscow  friends.  And  if,  as  is 
averred,  some  of  them  had  been  drawn  into  the  current 
of  sedition  and  conspiracy  mainly  by  a  certain  adventur- 
ous restlessness  of  spirit,  a  craving  for  release  from  the 
tame  routine  of  modern  life ;  surely  they  must  have 
been  amply  satisfied.  Such  a  state  of  constant  alarm, 
perpetual  watchfulness,  hair-breadth  escapes,  familiarity 
with  peril  even  to  the  blunting  of  the  keen -edged  sense 
of  danger,  is  just  wrhat  we  look  for  in  one  of  Cooper's 
Indian  stones  or  a  Highland  tale,  but  is  infinitely  startling 
in  the  midst  of  a  modern,  orderly,  civilized  community. 
Thoroughly  and  cunningly  had  the  enterprise  been 
devised  to  the  smallest  details.  A  house  situated  in  close 
vicinity  to  the  track  had  been  purchased  under  the  name 
of  one  of  the  conspirators — assumed  of  course — who  settled 
in  it  with  one  of  the  young  women  who  shared  the  secret 
and  gave  herself  out  as  his  wife,  and  a  few  companions, 
male  and  female.  Several  more  took  possession  of  fur- 
nished lodgings  hired  in  the  city  itself  by  another  such 
fictitious  couple,  who  used  to  come  over  for  the  day.  The 
house  was  too  small  to  accommodate  permanently  so 
many  inmates.  Besides,  it  was  deemed  advisable  not 
to  affront  the  wondering  gossip  of  a  prying  neighbor- 


208  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

hood,  which  would  infallibly  have  been  started  on  the 
right  scent  by  such  an  overcrowding  of  narrow  quarters. 
The  city-lodgings,  moreover,  were  to  facilitate  communi- 
cations, and,  in  case  of  need,  to  favor  concealment  and 
flight.  The  direction  of  the  work  was  entrusted  to  the 
nominal  owner  of  the  house,  known  under  the  nickname 
of  "  the  Alchemist."  A  subterranean  gallery  had  to  be 
conducted  to  the  track,  passing  under  the  embankment. 
One  or  more  openings  were  to  be  bored  through  the 
track  itself,  and  iron  pipes  containing  dynamite  were  to 
be  inserted  into  the  holes.  The  distance  was  somewhat 
longer  and  the  labor  rather  harder  than  had  been  antici- 
pated. The  sides  and  roof  of  the  gallery,  dug  in  the 
soft  earth  by  hand  and  shovel,  were  prevented  from  fall- 
ing in  by  boards,  which  were  placed  triangularly,  tent- 
wise — a  piece  of  work  which  necessitated  a  most  uncom- 
fortable twist  of  the  body,  since  in  no  place  was  there 
sufficient  height  to  stand  up.  The  whole  stock  of  tools 
consisted  of  two  shovels  and  a  sort  of  scoop,  like  that 
used  by  grocers,  to  smooth  the  sides  of  the  gallery 
before  placing  the  boards  ;  the  auger  or  borer  and  the 
pipes  lay  in  readiness — they  had  been  ordered  in  Mos- 
cow, the  workmen  of  course  being  ignorant  of  their  des- 
tination. The  auger  was  afterward  sent  to  St.  Petersburg, 
where  it  turned  up  in  the  secret  printing  office  and  served 
as  one  of  the  most  convincing  items  of  evidence.  The 
earth  was  taken  out  on  sheets  of  tin  plate,  provided  with 
casters  and  running  on  rails — an  ingenious  contrivance  of 
1 1  the  Alchemist. ' '  Each  load  was  brought  under  the  hatch 
or  shaft  cut  in  one  of  the  rooms  on  the  ground-floor,  and 
raised  by  means  of  ropes,  worked  from  above  by  a  spe- 
cies of  roughly  constructed  windlass.  The  greatest  dif- 
ficulty was  how  to  dispose  of  the  earth  and  rubbish.  At 
first  it  was  spread  out  and  smoothly  trodden  down  in  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  200 

yard  ;  then  they  began  to  fill  the  cellar  with  it,  and  lastly 
took  to  shovelling  it  into  the  larder  on  the  ground  floor, 
which  at  one  time  was  crammed  so  tightly  that  the  walls 
gave  way,  and  boards  began  to  fall  out  of  them.  Diffi- 
culties increased  as  the  work  advanced.  A  wooden  post 
on  which  they  stumbled  gave  them  very  much  trouble. 
Stones  greatly  obstructed  their  advance  as  they  neared 
the  embankment.  In  one  place  water  oozed  through  the 
top  of  the  vault  and  threatened  an  inundation,  so  that  it 
had  to  be  pumped  out ;  and  once  the  work  was  inter- 
rupted for  two  days.  Lastly,  and  in  spite  of  ventilation- 
pipes  laid  in  every  convenient  place,  the  air  grew  more 
and  more  oppressive  and  scarce,  not  to  mention  the  dan- 
ger of  being  buried  under  crumbling  masses  of  earth — a 
danger  which  became  so  great  that  "the  Alchemist" 
always  carried  poison  about  him,  to  insure  himself  a 
prompt  and  painless  death,  should  the  expected  catastro- 
phe really  come  to  pass.  The  fatigue,  the  hardship,  and 
the  suffering  must  have  been  terrible  to  men  for  the  most 
part  unused  to  manual  labor.  Yet  this  seditious  house- 
hold seems  to  have  been  by  no  means  a  gloomy  one.  Its 
members  were  united ;  the  self-imposed  duties  were  dis- 
charged with  enthusiastic  emulation.  Only  one  proved 
"a  wretched  workman,  and  so  lazy  that  he  was  dis- 
carded ;  "  another  was  in  bad  health,  and  for  that  reason 
was  sent  off  on  some  easier  errand,  not  without  taking 
with  him  a  small  stone  from  the  gallery  "  as  a  keepsake." 
One  of  the  youngest  members,  though  miserably  ill  all 
the  while,  and  probably  consumptive,  was  the  most  inde- 
fatigable laborer  of  all.  His  deep  conviction  of  working 
for  the  good  of  his  country  supported  him  through  hard- 
ship and  pain.  But  even  aside  from  the  ultimate  object, 
the  well-known  beneficent,  exhilarating  power  of  work, 
the  actual  process  of  labor  in  itself,  independently  of 


210 


RUSSIAN  XIHILISM  AND 


every  association  or  ambition,  must  have  made  itself  felt 
in  heightened  pulse  and  genial  flow  of  spirits.  These 
fanatical  young  miners  must  often  have  rejoiced  at  some 
obstacle  overcome  by  patience,  at  some  success  achieved 


under  difficulties  by  some  simple  but  clever  contrivance,  at 
some  gossip  outwitted,  without  reflecting  at  every  instant 
that  the  result  for  which  they  strained  nerve  and  brain 
was  to  be  death  to  many,  and  in  all  probability  to  them- 
selves. There  is  a  freshness  and  cheeriness  about  this 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  211 

part  of  Goldenberg's  relation  which  is  very  pathetic 
when  contrasted  with  the  circumstances  under  which  he 
wrote.  He  dwells  on  little  incidents  of  no  importance 
whatever  with  respect  to  the  momentous  facts  of  which 
he  treats,  but  full  of  interest  and  dramatic  vividness,  as  if 
even  in  the  dreary,  hopeless  solitude  of  his  prison  cell  he 
still  enjoyed  the  whiff  of  life  and  liberty  wafted  into  his 
living  grave  by  the  retrospect  of  those  days  of  lawless- 
ness and  danger,  but  also  of  daring  and  enthusiasm.  He 
writes : 

"  We  worked  very  assiduously,  beginning  generally  about  six  in  the  morn- 
ing ;  by  eight  we  usually  had  placed  one  pair  of  boards,  when  we  came  in  to 
tea.  We  then  worked  on  till  two,  our  dinner  hour ;  took  a  short  rest,  and 
worked  again  till  ten.  ...  I  remember  that  once,  during  the  first  days 
of  my  stay,  the  former  owner  of  the  house,  Anna  Trofimoff,  came  in  to  get 
some  sweet  meats  which  she  had  left  in  the  larder.  This  happened  in  the 
morning,  and  she  was  met  by  Hartmann,  as  the  rest  were  all  underground. 
Mariana  Semiovna  [the  lady  who  played  housekeeper  to  the  party],  being 
aware  that  the  larder  was  choke  full  of  earth  so  that  several  boards  had  burst 
out  of  the  sides — a  state  of  things  which  could  not  fail  to  excite  the  visitor's 
attention — professed  to  have  lost  the  key,  and  so  kept  her  away  from  it. 
Another  morning  Anna  Trofimoff  came  in  with  a  relative  of  hers,  to  take 
away  some  other  things.  At  that  very  moment  Mariana  Semiovna  was  ap- 
proaching the  house  with  her  marketing.  We  did  not  wish  her  to  be  met  by 
Anna  Trofimoff,  who  might  have  noticed  the  large  quantity  of  her  purchases, 
so  we  rapped  on  the  window  and  signed  to  her  not  to  come  nearer ;  she  un- 
derstood us  and  retired.  She  was  quite  equal  at  any  time  to  take  care  of  herself 
and  us.  Thus  once,  when  Anna  Trofimoff 's  servant  Mary  came  in  and  made 
some  remarks  which  caused  us  to  feel  uncomfortable,  Mariana  began  to  talk  of 
her  housekeeping,  and  how  the  cat  had  drunk  all  the  milk,  and  so  turned  off 
the  conversation.  ...  I  also  remember  that  Hartmann  once  forgot  to 
shut  and  lock  the  door  of  the  kitchen,  where  we  had  cut  the  hatch.  Next 
morning  an  old  man  came,  whose  name  I  do  not  remember,  but  who  used  to 
live  in  the  house  before  it  was  sold,  and,  on  entering,  remonstrated  with 
Hartmann  on  the  imprudence  of  leaving  the  door  open.  We  were  in  the 
next  room,  and  hearing  this  were  greatly  frightened,  lest  the  old  man  might 
have  noticed  our  work :  but  he  had  not." 

The  women  shared  the  household  duties  with  as  much 
eagerness  and  good-will  as1  the  men  jointly  pursued  their 


212  KUSS1AX    MZU1JSM  AM) 

underground  work.  Nor  was  their  assistance  limited  to 
this  humbler  sphere.  When  the  day  and  hour  of  the 
Emperor's  passage  was  announced  in  the. papers,  and  the 
roles  had  to  be  finally  distributed  for  tlie  closing  scene,  it 
was  Sophia  Perovsky  who  was  ordered  to  stand  on  the 
track,  watch  for  the  train,  and  give  the  signal  by  waving 
her  handkerchief.  "  She  was  greatly  pleased,"  says 
Goldenberg,  "  that  this  duty  had  devolved  upon  her,  and 
repeatedly  told  me  that  she  considered  herself  fortunate." 
Meanwhile  it  was  known  that  the  police  hovered  alarm- 
ingly in  the  neighborhood,  as  they  always  do  around 
every  railway  station  on  the  imperial  itinerary  ;  and  it 
was  unanimously  resolved,  in  case  of  surprise,  to  blow  up 
the  house,  but  on  no  account  to  surrender  alive.  From 
that  moment  Sophia  Perovsky  or  another  continually 
mounted  guard  with  cocked  revolver  in  the  room  where 
the  dynamite  was  kept  in  two  large  bottles  under  a  bed, 
ready  at  any  moment  to  fire  into  it. 

Shakespeare  might  have  dramatized  this' sketch ;  but 
could  he  have  improved  it? 

Lipetsk  is  a  small  and  rather  insignificant  town  mid- 
way between  Moscow  and  Kharkoff,  in  the  Government 
of  Tamboff.  It  glories  in  some  springs  of  very  mild 
mineral  waters,  which  in  the  short  midsummer  season, 
with  the  orthodox  accompaniment  of  noisy  bands  of  mu- 
sic and  noisier  casino,  attract  considerable  crowds  of 
doubtful  refinement,  representatives  of  the  second-hand 
world  of  fashion,  when  the  place  flares  up  for  a  few 
weeks  into  a  sort  of  hectic,  fictitious  life.  It  was  here 
that  Kviatkovsky,  Goldenberg,  and  their  friends,  after 
the  failure  of  the  14th  of  April,  met  by  previous  ap- 
pointment toward  the  end  of  June,  openly,  in  the  public 
gardens,  mindful  of  the  fact  that  privacy  is  nowhere 
more  undisturbed  than  in  a  throng,  and  that  it  is  safest 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


213 


to  talk  secrets  with  doors  wide  open.     These  desultory 
meetings  and  preliminary  conferences  went  on  for  some 


days,  until  all  the  lenders,  convoked  from  different  parts 
of  the  empire,  were  assembled.     Then,  when  the  serious 
14 


214  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

business  had  to  be  attacked,  it  was  deemed  advisable  to 
adjourn  to  more  secluded  spots,  and  the  party  used  to 
saunter  singly,  or  in  small  groups,  into  a  neighboring 
wood,  or  to  row  themselves  across  the  river,  and  hold 
their  seance  in  an  open  meadow.  The  points  to  be  dis- 
cussed and  resolved  upon  were  all-important :  they  were 
the  expediency  of  renewed  attempts  against  the  Czar's 
life  at  no  distant  period,  and  the  urgency  of  giving  the 
party  "  a  stronger,  more  compact  organization."  Gol- 
denberg  says : 

"  The  first  of  these  points  was  readily  disposed  of.  I  and  several  others 
spoke  in  favor  of  a  prompt  execution  of  the  intended  regicide,  in  order  quickly 
to  convince  the  Government  that  harsh  measures  would  not  put  a  stop  to  the 
movement  directed  against  it,  and  that  therefore  it  would  have  to  make  con- 
cessions. ...  I  moreover  moved  the  assassination  of  the  Governors- 
General  of  Odessa,  Kieff,  and  St.  Petersburg,  though,  of  course,  only  in  case 
that  it  should  not  interfere  with  the  regicide,  which  was  to  be  our  first  and 
principal  object." 

It  is  especially  impressive  and  painfully  significant  to 
find  these  sanguinary  measures  countenanced  by  a  young 
man,  Goldenberg's  particular  friend,  whom  he  expressly 
mentions  as  "  one  of  the  gentlest  and  most  humane  of 
men,  held  in  profound  esteem  by  the  entire  revolutionary 
party,  although  he  belonged  to  one  special  faction  of  it. 
1  should  remark,"  he  adds,  "  that  he  was  not  very  favor- 
ably inclined  to  the  terrorizing  system,  and  had  but  lately 
joined  it,  moved  solely  by  a  revengeful  and  embittered 
feeling  against  the  Government  in  consequence  of  a  long 
series  of  cruel  persecutions,  which  had  impressed  him  the 
more  deeply  that  some  of  those  who  had  suffered  death 
had  been  his  associates  and  friends." 

Little  contradiction,  then,  was  encountered  by  the 
resolution  decreeing  a  further  continuance  of  the  "ter- 
rorizing system."  The  difficulties  of  the  organization 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  215 

question  were  much  greater.  It  was,  indeed,  a  compli- 
cated question ,  at  least  practically  ;  for  in  theory  all  had 
long  felt  the  absolute  necessity  of  greater  unity,  of  more 
concerted  action.  The  different  fractions  of  the  social- 
istic or  revolutionary  party,  distinguished  by  various 
shadings  of  opinion  not  merely  as  to  the  means  to  be  em- 
ployed, but  frequently  as  to  the  ultimate  objects  to  be 
pursued,  preserved  toward  each  other  an  indifferent, 
sometimes  almost  hostile,  attitude,  and  carried  on  a  sep- 
arate propaganda  by  means  of  their  several  secret  organs 
printed  and  disseminated  by  different  centres,  which  dis- 
claimed all  connection  with  each  other.  It  was  to  con- 
ciliate these  dissentions,  to  merge  all  the  various  frag- 
mentary cliques  into  one  vast  co-operative  organization, 
that  so  many  leaders  met  at  Lipetsk.  It  was, an  almost 
hopeless  task  ;  and  though  they  did  achieve  a  certain  re- 
sult, and  even  produced  a  sort  of  statute, — which,  how- 
ever, was  never  printed, — it  was,  on  the  whole,  a  very 
imperfect  and  makeshift  performance.  There  was  to  be 
a  "directing  committee,"  which, from  the  nature  of  the 
duties  it  assumed,  might  be  called  a  superior  agent ; 
while  the  "  executive  committee  "  clearly  ought  to  have 
taken  an  inferior  position.  On  this  Goldenberg,  with  a 
characteristic  directness  which  at  once  discloses  the 
feebleness  of  the  organization,  remarks  : 

"  But  our  people  generally  objected  to  subordination,  and  therefore  the 
executive  committee  was  not  really  placed  under  the  control  of  the  directing 
committee.  The  latter  was  bound  to  know  all  that  was  going  on  in  the  ter- 
roristic faction,  and  indeed,  in  the  entire  revolutionary  party ;  in  its  hands 
were  centred  all  the  resources  of  the  party,  and  it  was  to  provide  the  neces- 
sary means  for  whatever  undertaking  was  in  hand.  The  '  executive  '  was  to 
consist  of  persons  whose  duty  it  was  to  take  an  active  part  in  such  undertak- 
ings, of  course  with  the  knowledge  of  the  directing  committee.  It  does  not 
follow,  however,  that  the  initiative  of  a  given  undertaking  belonged  exclu- 
sively to  the  directing  committee  ;  far  from  it.  The  executive  also  had  the  right 
of  making  motions  and  submitting  them  to  the  higher  committee.  There  was 


216  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

no  such  thing  as  a  strict  line  of  demarcation  between  the  two,  as  can  be  seen 
from  the  fact  that  a  member  of  the  directing  committee  could  not  issue  binding 
dispositions  without  the  sanction  of  the  executive,  nor  take  on  himself  execut- 
ive acts.  It  was,  moreover,  resolved  to  have  agents  of  two  degrees ;  those 
of  the  first  degree  to  be  invested  with  greater  trust,  those  of  the  second  with 
lesser.  The  duty  of  these  agents  was  to  fulfil  whatever  was  imposed  on 
them.  The  directing  committee  was  to  reside  in  St.  Petersburg,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  executive  wherever  their  presence  and  services  would  be  needed." 

One  of  the  prisoners  completed  this  account  at  the 
trial  by  remarking  that  "the  distinction  between  the 
members  of  the  organization  and  its  agents  was  real  and 
important.  It  was  resolved  that  persons  who  were  as  yet 
little  known,  but  whom  it  could  be  hoped  to  find  useful 
and  reliable  in  the  sequel,  should  be  attracted  by  every 
possible  means,  and  tried  occasionally  in  small  things, 
with  great  care  to  find  out,  above  all,  whether  they 
approved  of  the  general  programme  of  the  party,  and 
were  fit  to  be  trusted  with  the  execution  of  more  impor- 
tant missions. 

This  is,  indeed,  the  very  infancy  of  co-operation  ;  and 
if  so  many  desperate  deeds  were  achieved,  or  at  least  at- 
tempted, it  is  to  be  attributed  not  so  much  to  the  effi- 
ciency of  the  association,  lacking  as  it  was  in  blind  dis- 
cipline, that  main  nerve  of  every  secret  society,  as  to  the 
powerful  individuality  of  some  of  its  members,  acting 
severally  or  in  groups.  Goldenberg's  rather  naively 
worded  statement,  "our  people  generally  objected  to 
subordination,"  sets  forth  in  homely  fashion  a  lesson 
taught  by  the  whole  history  of  Russia ;  namely,  that 
"  our  people,"  though  able  at  any  moment  to  muster  a 
superb  array  of  personal  capacities,  intellectual  and 
moral,  have  always  been,  through  lack  of  training  or 
some  more  deep-lying  natural  bias,  singularly  unapt  for 
prolonged  combined  action.  We  are  born  protestants, 
every  one  of  us  ;  and  however  we  may  yield  up  our  will 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  217 

to  external  guidance,  there  always  remains  an  indestruc- 
tible nucleus  of  reasoning  self,  which  rebels  and  shrinks 
from  going  all  lengths  merely  because  we  are  told  to  do 
so,  even  in  a  cherished  cause,  and  under  approved  leader- 
ship. This  quality,  like  every  other,  has  its  good  and 
evil  sides.  It  has  at  times  disastrously  asserted  itself  in 
our  history — as  when,  enforced  by  petty  rivalries  and 
mutual  jealousies,  it  retarded  by  more  than  one  score  of 
years  the  final  liberation  of  our  land  from  the  Tartar 
yoke,  which  might  have  been  thrown  off  earlier  by  the 
united  action  of  our  several  princes.  Yet,  on  the  other 
hand,  when  called  into  play  by  honest  motives,  it  con- 
tains, perhaps,  a  safeguard  against  that  passive  subjec- 
tion to  mere  authority  which  makes  men  follow  a  waving 
banner  when  it  has  ceased  to  be  anything  but  a  rag  of 
silk  or  bunting,  and  stake  their  lives  and  souls  on  a 
watchword  after  it  has  long  been  only  the  empty  shell  of 
an  idea.  However  that  may  be,  this  key-note  makes 
itself  distinctly  heard  through  the  uproar  of  our  late 
troubles.  It  rings  out  very  clearly  in  Solovieff's  declara- 
tion that,  should  his  associates  unanimously  disapprove 
of  his  project,  he  will  separate  himself  from  them,  and 
pursue  it  at  his  own  risk,  and  on  his  own  responsibility 
before  the  law  and  before  his  conscience.  We  may  be 
very  sure  that  the  knot  of  underground  workers  on  the 
outskirts  of  Moscow  would  not  have  been  deterred  from 
their  undertaking  by  the  most  positive  prohibition  from 
their  party's  highest  authorities  ;  they  would  simply  have 
seceded,  and  gone  on  doing  what  they  considered  right 
and  necessary. 

One  item  of  the  unwritten  statute  seems  to  have  been 
most  consistently  carried  out — that  of  secrecy.  The 
means  employed  were  twofold  :  first  the  lavish  use  of 
false  papers,  most  o'f  the  agents  being  provided  with  sev- 


218  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AM , 

eral  names  and  passports  to  match  ;  second;  the  strict 
observance  of  the  rule  to  keep  every  agent  as  much  as 
possible  in  the  dark  concerning  everything  but  the  par- 
ticular "  job"  imposed  on  him,  and,  as  far  as  feasible, 
in  ignorance  even  of  his  fellow-conspirators,  who  were  to 
be- introduced  to  him  as  occasion  required,  and  as  the 
more  knowing  agents  saw  fit.  No  agent  was,  on  any  ac- 
count, to  discover  himself  even  to  his  nearest  and  dearest 
without  the  authorization  of  a  superior  agent.  This  sys- 
tem must  have  produced  a  most  intricate  social  status, 
and  made  daily  life  a  network  of  imbroglios  to  which  old 
Spanish  comedy  was  simple  and  transparent.  What  a 
curious  state  of  mind  to  live  in,  when  a  man  was  liable 
at  any  moment  to  see  some  inoffensive  comrade — a  light- 
hearted  sister,  or  cousin,  or  young  lady  friend — -appear 
in  the  character  of  a  blood-thirsty  revolutionist :  to  rec- 
ognize in  the  stranger  to  whom  he  was  formally  intro- 
duced his  dearest  friend,  whom  he  thought  of  as  hundreds 
of  miles  distant ;  to  form  new  friendships  without  ever 
knowing  his  new  friends'  real  names,  or  their  knowing 
his  !  In  short,  every  man  must  have  lived  under  the  be- 
wildering impression  that  everybody,  himself  included, 
was,  or  might  prove  to  be — somebody  else  !  Indeed,  the 
sedulous  observance  of  these  aliases  and  disguises  almost 
suggests  an  amused  suspicion  that  this,  as  one  mightterm 
it,  masquerading  part  of  conspiring  was  not  without  exer- 
cising a  peculiar  attraction  on  the  youthful  plotters,  after 
they  had  been  duly  prepared  and  electrified  at  frequent, 
though  generally  not  numerous,  meetings  by  the  well- 
directed  harangues  of  able  and  experienced  agitators. 
Goldenberg  has  in  one  place  very  graphically  described, 
in  his  unadorned  style,  these  match-and-gunpowder  ex- 
periments. The  meeting  of  which  he  speaks  had  been 
arranged  at  the  house  of  a  schoolmaster,  and  was  at- 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  219 

tended  by  some  twenty  persons,  young  men  and  young 
women.     Says  Goldenberg : 

"I  spoke  about  the  purport  of  the  terroristic  movement;  alluded  to  regi- 
cide, of  course  only  theoretically,  without  even  hinting  that  such  an  act  was 
really  in  contemplation.  My  object  was  merely  to  feel  my  ground,  and  find 
out  the  views  of  the  young  people  on  this  topic.  I  took  care  not  to  overstep 
plausible  bounds,  and  did  not  expatiate  on  the  greatness  of  our  power  and 
resources.  Closely  observing  the  impression  which  my  speech  produced  on 
the  young  people,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  did  not  fully  comprehend 
me,  and  that  all  the  things  I  was  talking  of  were  rather  novel  to  the  major- 
ity of  my  audience;  at  the  same  time,  I  could  see  that  I  had  aroused  in  them 
the  wish  to  elucidate  all  these  questions.  The  second  meeting  took  place  at 
the  house  of  a  student ;  it  was  attended  by  forty  persons — the  former  twenty 
and  twenty  more,  whose  names  I  cannot  remember  at  this  distance  of  time. 

.  .  .  The  result  of  these  meetings  was  that  our  young  people  took  the 
greatest  liking  to  them,  and  began  to  manifest  an  almost  passionate  desire  to 
have  them  frequently  repeated." 

That  so  powerful  and  far-reaching  a  weapon  should 
not  be  neglected  by  the  leaders  of  the  party  when  they 
discussed  the  practical  questions  of  ways  and  -means,  was 
but  natural.  Accordingly  we  find  it  decreed  that,  "  apart 
from  political  murders  and  regicide,  a  vast  plan  of  agita- 
tion shall  be  pursued  among  '  the  young  people,'  the 
army  and  peasantry."  It  is  well  known,  however,  that 
in  the  two  latter  classes,  from  organically  historical 
causes  which  it  would  take  a  separate  paper  to  investi- 
gate, revolutionary  agitation  has  always  signally  failed, 
to  the  confusion  and  not  unfrequently  the  personal  danger 
of  the  agents  employed. 

Such  were  the  principal  acts  and  resolutions  of  the 
famous  socialistic  convention  held  at  Lipetsk  in  June, 
1879,  the  immediate  sequel  to  which  were  the  threefold 
railway  mining  attempt  and  the  crowning  scene  of  which 
we  still  have  to  record.  But  in  describing  the  horrors  of 
the  17th  of  February,  1880,  and  all  that  followed  it,  we 
are  deprived  of  our  invaluable  guide,  Goldenber"g's  depo- 


220 


NIHILISM  AND 


sition.  The  daring  revolutionist's  career  came  to  a  close 
with  those  last  busy  days  which  he  spent  with  his  mining 
friends  near  Moscow.  He  was  sent  off  by  them  to 
Odessa  for  the  dynamite  forwarded  to  that  city  several 


weeks  before,  and  now  rendered  useless  by  the  Emperor's 
change  of  route  and  consequent  cessation  of  the  mining 
operations  on  the  track,  as  it  was  thought  the  reinforce- 
ment might  be  available  for  the  Moscow  mine,  and  insure 


KXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 

more  complete  success.  In  Odessa,  Goldenberg  had  in- 
terviews with  several  associates,  received  the  dynamite, 
and  having  packed  it  in  his  trunk,  together  with  sundry 
bottles  of  wine  and  cans  of  preserves, — a  very  welcome 
offering  from  the  ladies  of  the  party  to  their  Moscow 
friends, — he  was  calmly  proceeding  on  his  way  to  the  lat- 
ter when  he  was  arrested  at  Telizavetgrad,  a  railway  sta- 
tion half-way  between  Odessa  and  Poltava.  This  hap- 
pened five  days  before  the  explosion  on  the  Moscow  track. 
Yet,  even  though  deprived  of  the  valuable  information 
concerning  the  preparations  for  the  final  coup  of  the  17th 
of  February,  which  a  continuation  of  Goldenberg' s  nar- 
rative would  doubtless  have  afforded  us,  we  still  find  in 
the  examinations  of  the  prisoners  and  witnesses,  as  well 
as  in  the  speech  of  the  counsel  for  the  Crown,  sufficient 
scraps  and  traits  from  life  to  enable  us  to  piece  together 
a  very  vivid  picture  of  the  dismay  and  confusion  which 
must  have  arisen  in  the  Winter  Palace  when  that  tremen- 
dous crash  broke  in  upon  the  compliments  with  which  the 
Emperor  was  welcoming  Prince  Alexander  of  Hesse,  who 
was  that  evening  to  be  his  guest  at  a  family  dinner  in  the 
private  apartments.  Officials  wildly  rushing  into  the 
lower  story,  under  the  impression  that  either  the  steam- 
boiler  or  the  gas  had  exploded  ;  the  alarm-bell  of  the 
corps-de-garde  ringing  frantically  at  the  same  time  ;  the 
shrieks  and  groans  of  the  dying  and  wounded,  who 
struggled  painfully  from  under  the  debris  of  the  demol- 
ished guard-room,  or  lay  helplessly  crushed  beneath  them 
(sixty-seven  persons  in  all!);  lastly  the  sudden  report 
that  one  of  the  three  carpenters  in  whose  room  the  ex- 
plosion was  discovered  to  have  taken  place  was  missing, — 
all  this  must  have  combined  into  a  scene  of  uproar  and 
terror  not  easily  matched  outside  of  a  beleaguered  and 
bombarded  city.  The  report  about  the  missing  carpen- 


222  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ter,  which  was  speedily  confirmed,  restored  some  degree 
of  order  and  composure,  by  giving  a  definite  object  to  the 
hitherto  aimless  search  and  random  surmises  of  the 
panic-stricken  inmates.  It  was  soon  evident  that  this 
man,  and  no  other,  had  been  the  doer.  He  had  been 
seen  in  the  basement  and  in  his  room  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  before  the  explosion  ;  had  then  been  found  busy  in 
the  dark  at  something  or  other  by  one  of  his  comrades, 
who  on  entering  had  offered  to  strike  a  light,  but  had 
been  roughly  prevented  by  him  ;  and  from  that  moment 
the  carpenter  had  entirely  disappeared.  Further  inqui- 
ries showed  that  this  person,  who  called  himself  Baty- 
shkoff,  had  been  employed  in  the  palace  over  six  months, 
and,  while  he  approved  himself  a  well-behaved,  thorough 
workman,  had  been  noticed  by  his  companions  and  su- 
periors as  a  man  of  education,  highly  intelligent,  and 
fully  capable  of  taking  a  plan  and  making  a  correct  draw- 
ing. About  a  month  before  the  explosion  he  had  brought 
a  heavy  chest  and  placed  it  in  his  room,  and,  on  being 
asked  what  he  did  it  for,  had  jestingly  answered  that  he 
meant  to  hoard  a  treasure  from  his  earnings  in  the  palace. 
Subsequent  investigations  and  various  discoveries, — such 
as  a  cleverly-sketched  plan  of  the  Winter  Palace,  on 
which  were  some  words  in  his  handwriting,  his  identifica- 
tion by  witnesses  from  a  photograph,  etc., — proved  be- 
yond a  doubt  that  the  supposed  Batyshkoff  was  no  other 
than  Khaltourin,  a  notorious  revolutionist,  who,  under 
the  greatest  variety  of  aliases,  and  as  far  back  as  1875 
and  1876,  had  been  plying  an  active  "  agitation  "  among 
the  working-classes,  and  organizing  the  secret  association 
known  under  the  name  of  "  Northern  Workingmen's 
League."  He  was  specially  fitted  for  this  circle  of  ac- 
tion, being  himself  one  of  the  working-class  and  by  birth 
a  peasant,  who,  by  self-education  and  a  course  of  studies 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

in  a  technical  school,  had  qualified  himself  for  the  part 
of  a  leader.  He  was  never  found  after  his  disappearance 
from  the  palace,  and  we  cannot  help  wishing  he  may 
have  effected  a  final  escape,  as  it  is  known  that  he  was  in 
the  gripe  of  a  foe  as  implacable  as  human  justice, — con- 
sumption, which  in  our  clime  seldom  gives  long  respites 
to  its  victims.  He  had  been  talking  of  going  south,  and 
seems  also  to  have  had  a  vague  intention  of  making  his 
way  to  America,  to  found  or  join  some  agricultural  colony 
on  socialistic  principles. 

It  was,  of  course,  not  for  one  moment  supposed  that 
this  attempt,  planned  as  it  was  on  so  gigantic  a  scale, 
with  such  far-reaching  foresight,  executed  with  such  un- 
exampled daring  and  infallible  precision,  should  fiave 
been  the  isolated  deed  of  one  fanatical  schemer.  Its 
connection  with  the  vast  terroristic  system,  suspected 
from  the  first,  was  soon  established  by  the  concatenation 
in  which  it  was  proved  to  stand  with  certain  other  facts, 
revealed  a  short  time  before,  but  not  yet  fully  explained 
— facts  which,  by  the  light  now  shed  on  them,  stood 
forth  in  their  full  significance,  too  obvious  to  need  more 
than  recording,  in  order  to  bring  the  last  crime  home  to 
the  central  influence  from  which  so  many  others  had 
emanated. 

It  is  now  that  the  name  of  Kviatkovsky  first  becomes 
conspicuous.  Until  the  very  moment  of  his  arrest,  this 
remarkable  man,  one  of  the  "master-spirits"  and  mo- 
tive powers  of  the  whole  engine,  had  contrived  to  escape 
a  notoriety  which  must  have  deprived  the  party  of  one 
of  its  most  gifted  leaders,  and  had  worked  steadily  and 
covertly  in  the  dark,  participating,  indeed,  in  all  the 
more  important  machinations,  putting  in  an  appearance  at 
Lipetsk,  but  reserving  to  himself  more  especially  the 
handling  of  that  chief  lever  of  all,  the  secret  press, 


224  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

whose  discovery  and  suppression  quickly  followed  his 
arrest  and  the  search  instituted  in  his  lodgings  as  early  as 
the  6th  of  December,  1879.  Some  articles  produced  by 
this  search  were  deemed,  not  unreasonably,  to  be  con- 
clusive evidence  of  his  complicity  in  his  party's  crown- 
ing act  of  frenzy.  Yet  Kviatkovsky  himself,  from 
reasons  difficult  to  fathom,  saw  fit  utterly  to  deny  to  the 
last  having  been  concerned  in  this  particular  act,  or  hav- 
ing had  previous  knowledge  of  it,  even  while  protesting 
that  he  had  no  hopes  that  such  a  denial  could  save  his 
life,  which  he  admitted  to  be  forfeited  on  many  other 
grounds,  each  of  them  sufficient  to  seal  his  doom.  It  is 
hardly  to  be  supposed  that  so  clear-headed  a  man  should 
have  expected  his  word  to  prevail  against  such  circum- 
stantial evidence  as  the  following  articles  found  in  his 
own  room  :  ( 1)  a  plan,  very  correctly  drawn  from  mem- 
ory, of  the  Winter  Palace,  with  some  words  aud  short 
notes  proved  to  be  in  Khaltourin's  writing,  and  found 
crumpled  up  on  the  floor  in  a  corner,  amid  a  heap  of 
waste-paper;  (2)  three  portable  mines,  complete  and 
ready  for  use;  and  (3)  a  passport  under  the  name  of 
Batourin,  one  of  Khaltourin's  well-known  aliases.  Yet 
he  persisted  in  his  most  incredible  statement  that  he 
knew  nothing  of  the  plan  until  it  was  found  in  his  room, 
and  that  he  had  not  the  remotest  suspicion  by  whom  it 
could  have  been  brought  or  left  there  ;  that  the  passport 
had  been  given  him  to  keep  by  a  friend,  who  himself  had 
it  from  an  unknown  workingman,  and  that  he  had  never 
been  told  Batourin 's  real  name.  As  for  the  mines,  he 
simply  declined  telling  who  had  brought  them  to  his 
rooms. 

But  this  search,  exhaustively  carried  on  all  through 
the  evening  and  night  (from  6  p.  M.  to  5  A.  M.),  led  to 
even  more  important  results,  as  hinted  above.  It  em- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN"  SIBERIA.  225 

braced  not  only  his  own  room,  hut  that  of  Eugenie 
Figner — a  young  lady  of  considerable  ability  and  educa- 
tion, Kviatkovsky's  devoted  fellow-worker,  and  to  whom 
he  seems  to  have  been  attached  by  more  than  the  bond  of 
a  common  cause.  She  was  one  of  the  sixteen  prisoners 
at  the  bar.  Both  of  course  lived  under  assumed  names. 
Her  ostensible  occupation  was  music,  to  which,  as  a 
measure  of  precaution,  she  devoted  enough  time  every 
day  to  enable  her  cook  to  depose  at  the  trial  that  "  the 
lady  was  mostly  playing  on  the  piano  in  the  absence  of 
the  gentleman,  who  used  to  go  out  early  in  the  morning, 
and  to  come  home  only  to  dinner  and  tea."  The  same 
witness,  however,  added  that  both  "the  lady"  and  her 
sister,  who  at  one  time  stayed  with  her,  "  used  to  write 
a  great  deal," — a  piece  of  information  which,  consider- 
ing her  connection  with  the  manager  of  the  secret  press, 
was  not  interpreted  in  her  favor.  But  then,  nothing 
much  more  criminating  could  have  been  adduced  against 
them  both  than  a  simple  enumeration  of  the  articles 
found  in  their  lodgings.  In  Eugenie  Figner's  room,  a 
glass  vessel  with  dynamite  ;  a  bundle  of  white  paper,  the 
size  and  shape  of  Narodnaya  Volia  (Will  of  the  Peo- 
ple) ;  and  six  hundred  and  fifty-three  copies  of  odd 
numbers  of  that  paper  itself.  In  the  dining-room, forty- 
five  copies  of  a  proclamation  issued  by  the  executive 
coraittee  on  occasion  of  the  late  railroad  explosion  near 
Moscow.  In  Kviatkovsky's  own  room,  packed  in  a 
trunk,  proof-sheets  of  the  Narodnaya  Volia,  and  other 
products  of  the  "free  press;"  forty-five  copies  of 
a  revolutionary  programme  of  action ;  several  manu- 
scripts containing  seditious  matter,  evidently  ready  for 
the  press  ;  a  proclamation  "  To  the  brave  Cossack  army," 
and  sundry  letters  ;  lastly,  a  package  of  forged  pass- 
ports, certificates,  and  other  documents.  Kviatkovsky, 


226  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

aware  of  the  unanswerable  nature  of  the  evidence,  did 
not  attempt  denial  for  his  own  part,  but  only  used  every 
effort  to  clear  his  friend  by  asserting  that  the  crimina- 
ting articles  found  in  her  bureau  had  been  laid  there  by 
him  shortly  before  the  search,  in  her  absence  and  with- 
out her  knowledge.  In  his  defence — for  he,  in  common 
with  several  of  his  companions,  had  refused  the  assist- 
ance of  the  counsel  proffered  him  by  the  court — he  main- 
tained this  point  as  earnestly  as  his  denial  concerning  his 
complicity  in  the  catastrophe  at  the  Winter  Palace. 

The  next  important  disclosures  were  made  at  the  lodg- 
ings of  another  active  accomplice,  searched  a  few  days 
later,  on  the  16th  of  December.  From  the  nature  of  the 
articles  found  in  his  possession  it  was  evident  that  this 
person — an  inferior  clerk  in  some  government  office — was 
chiefly  employed,  probably  on  account  of  his  skill  in  pen- 
manship, in  the  manufacture  of  those  false  documents 
with  which  agents  were  so  lavishly  supplied.  A  com- 
plete set  of  the  necessary  materials  and  implements,  to- 
gether with  a  handsome  collection  of  autograph  signatures 
of  high  officials,  were  discovered  in  a  large  leathern  trunk, 
besides  a  number  of  proof-sheets  and  papers  similar  to 
those  confiscated  in  Kviatkovsky's  rooms,  and  the  usual 
accompaniment  of  dynamite  obligate.  Moreover,  the 
owner's  connection  with  the  secret  press  was  made  pat- 
ent by  the  presence  of  a  quantity  of  type  of  a  size  cor- 
responding to  that  of  the  "  Narodnaya  Volia."  But  the 
final  and  most  tragical  event  came  to  pass  a  few  weeks 
later,  on  the  30th  of  January,  1880,  when  the  police 
descended  in  force,  assisted  by  a  party  of  gendarmes,  on 
the  revolutionary  printing  office  itself,  after  having  first, 
by  long  and  patient  spying  and  ferreting,  ascertained  be- 
yond the  possibility  of  a  mistake  that  it  was  organized  in 
a  private  lodging  kept  by  one  of  those  fictitious  couples 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  227 

who  form  so  conspicuous  a  feature  of  these  strange 
times.  The  scene  which  ensued  must  have  been  chaotic  ; 
for  it  is  a  hopeless  task  to  try  and  elicit  anything  like  a 
consistent,  orderly  narrative  from  the  mass  of  fragment- 
ary, individual  evidence  given  by  the  different  actors. 
Their  statements  are  not  contradictory,  only  vague  and 
confused ;  like  those  of  men  who  have  been  engaged  in 
action  too  exciting  and  too  rapid  to  be  able  to  account  for 
it  minutely  in  cold  blood.  So  much  is  certain  :  the  door 
was  not  opened  in  obedience  to  repeated  summons,  and 
had  to  be  burst  in ;  the  police,  when  they  at  length 
forced  their  way  into  the  rooms,  were  confronted  by 
utter  darkness,  silence,  and  clicking  revolvers  ;  a  violent 
blind  scuffle  ensued,  in  which  about  sixty  shots  were  ex- 
changed, without  serious  results,  on  account  of  the  dark- 
ness. At  last  there  was  a  cry,  "  We  surrender  !"  "How 
many  are  you;"  was  asked.  "Five!"  answered  a  fe- 
male voice.  Another  was  heard  in  angry  remonstrance  : 
"  Cowards  !  was  it  not  agreed  that  we  were  all  to  tight  it 
out !  And  now  you  skulk  behind  and  leave  us  women  in 
the  front."  In  another  moment,  and  after  some  strug- 
gling on  the  part  of  the  men,  four  persons,  two  of  them 
women,  were  secured  and  bound,  while  six  revolvers  were 
picked  up  from  the  floor. 

One  of  the  police  officers  who  advanced  into  the 
other  rooms  to  look  for  his  prisoner,  was  greeted  on  the 
threshold  of  the  furthest  one  by  a  double  report ;  and 
when  a  lamp  was  at  length  brought  in  (it  must  be  re- 
membered that  our  private  houses  are  not  lit  with  gas), 
he  beheld  a  ghastly  sight ;  a  man  lying  dead  upon  a  mat- 
tress on  the  floor,  shot  through  the  head, — evidently  an 
act  of  suicide,  committed  as  a  last  resource  against  sur- 
render. Both  balls,  from  two  shots  fired  in  immediate 
succession,  had  entered  the  right  temple  through  the 


228  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

same  opening  almost  simultaneously,  leaving  a  black  and 
carbonized  edge  around  the  wound,  but  had  issued  from 
the  skull,  after  traversing  the  brain,  in  two  different 
places, — through  an  opening  just  above  the  left  ear,  and 
another  in  the  crown  of  the  head.  When  the  prisoners 
had  been  disposed  of,  and  the  search  could  begin  without 
further  disturbance,  the  first  thing  that  was  discovered, 
thrown  into  a  corner  of  the  room  where  the  dead  man 
lay,  and  wrapped  in  some  old  matting,  was  the  identical 
auger  which  had  been  used  for  boring  purposes  in  the 
Moscow  railway  mine.  The  rest  of  the  booty  made  up  a 
most  formidable  inventory :  a  printing  press  in  perfect 
working  order  ;  about  25 pauds  (1,000  pounds)  of  type, 
4,000  copies  of  the  "Narodnaya  Volia"  heaps  of 
forged  documents, — passport  blanks,  certificates  of  dif- 
ferent kinds,  etc. — together  with  everything  necessary 
for  the  fabrication  of  those  documents,  some  dynamite 
of  course,  two  pamphlets  on  the  preparation  of  the  sub- 
stance, several  plans  illustrating  the  process  of  blowing 
up  a  rapidly  advancing  train,  and  many  other  things,  be- 
sides the  six  revolvers  and  three  daggers.  This  was 
certainly  sufficient  to  justify  the  accusation  in  affirming 
that  "  these  lodgings  contained,  besides  the  secret  print- 
ing office,  the  central  agency  for  the  manufacturing  of 
false  papers  and  supplying  therewith  all  persons  for 
whom  it  became  necessary  to  assume  an  '  illegal '  posi- 
tion, as  well  as  a  laboratory  for  the  preparation  of  dyna- 
mite and  other  explosive  substances." 

The  separate  charge  against  the  prisoner  Presniakoff— 
given  in  the  Act  of  Accusation  under  the  head  of 
"  Armed  resistance  to  the  agents  of  the  law,  as  expressed 
by  two  shots  fired  by  the  prisoner,  wounding  one  and 
causing  the  death  of  the  other  of  his  captors" — presents 
no  particular  interest  or  complication,  and  may  therefore 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  229 

be  dismissed  with  the  brief  remark  that  the  prisoner's 
guilt  was  amply  proved.  It  remains  to  record  the  sen- 
tence, pronounced  late  in  the  evening  of  the  seventh  day 
of  this  long  and  laborious  trial.  For  Kviatkovsky,  Pres- 
niakoff  and  three  more,  it  was  death  by  hanging ;  for 
the  remaining  eleven,  banishment  to  Siberia  in  dif- 
ferent grades  of  severity,  with  or  without  imprisonment 
and  hard  labor,  and  for  terms  varying  from  fifteen 
to  twenty  years.  At  the  same  time  the  latter  prisoners 
were  recommended  to  mercy,  and  considerable  commu- 
tations proposed  for  all.  In  its  final  form,  the  sentence 
condemned  only  two  to  hard  labor  in  the  mines  for  fif- 
teen years.  Of  the  rest,  some  were  sentenced  to  hard 
labor,  not  in  the  mines  but  in  state  factories,  for  four 
and  eight  years  ;  some  to  banishment  to  more  or  less 
remote  parts  of  Siberia ;  while  Drigo  and  one  other  es- 
caped with  a  very  mild  sentence,  simply  obliging  them  to 
reside  hereafter  in  the  Government  of  Tomsk,  the  most 
western,  and  consequently  most  civilized,  region  of  Si- 
beria. Degradation  was  passed  alike  against  all.  In 
confirming  the  sentence  of  the  court,  the  Emperor  fur- 
ther commuted  the  death  penalty  of  three  of  the  five 
condemned  prisoners  to  exile,  with  imprisonment  and 
hard  labor  for  life.  To  Kviatkovsky  and  Presniakoff, 
however,  the  imperial  mercy  did  not  extend  ;  and  they 
suffered  death  on  the  16th  of  November,  within  the  walls 
of  the  fortress. 

It  is  but  fair  to  state  that,  throughout  this  long  and 
fatiguing  judicial  procedure,  the  treatment  used  towards 
the  prisoners  was  uniformly  considerate  and  polite,  the 
mode  of  addressing  and  questioning  them  scrupulously 
courteous  ;  also,  that  the  counsel  for  the  prosecution  in 
their  speeches  not  only  evidently  strove  to  remain  within 
the  strict  bounds  of  impartial  justice,  but  repeatedly 
15 


230  RUSSIAN"  NIHILISM  ANL> 

showed  a  leaning  towards  leniency.  Thus,  in  deferring 
to  one  of  the  female  defenders  of  the  printing  office — a 
woman  of  the  peasant  class  who  had  lived  there  ostensi- 
bly as  cook — the  orator  parenthetically  expressed  hope 
that  the  judges  would  find  it  not  inconsistent  with  their 
duty  to  visit  her  with  the  lightest  possible  punishment, 
in  consideration  of  her  ignorance,  almost  even  of  reading 
and  writing,  and  of  her  utter  want  of  culture  amounting 
to  stupidity,  and  accompanied  by  partial  deafness.  All 
this  is  in  keeping  with  the  serious  and  dignified  spirit  in 
which  our  lawyers,  since  the  great  judicial  reform,  regard 
their  profession.  That  compound  of  unseemly  virulence, 
ferocious  vindictiveness,  and  bombastic  phraseology 
which,  under  the  name  of  reqisitoire,  is  the  disgrace  of 
French  criminal  courts  and  the  glory  of  an  aspiring  pro- 
cureur  du  roi — or  de  Vempereur,  or  de  la  republique,  as  the 
case  may  be — is  utterly  repugnant  to  the  deep  humane 
bent  of  the  Russian  nature.  A  Russian  procureur  would 
scorn  to  dig  into  the  past  life  of  an  unfortunate  prisoner, 
in  order  triumphantly  to  drag  to  light  his  most  trivial 
youthful  peccadilloes,  nay  !  his  schoolboy  pranks,  and  by 
dint  of  cruel  ingenuity  to  force  and  twist  them  into  so 
many  proofs  of  a  precocious  viciousness,  an  unnatural  pro- 
pensity to  evil,  until  he  stands  before  society  a  predestined 
criminal,  a  monster  branded  even  before  he  failed,  and 
now  placed  entirely  out  of  the  pale  of  humanity.  Ever 
since  the  European  judicial  forms  and  institutions  were 
transplanted  into  Russian  soil,  and  quickly  took  root  in 
it,  our  parquet  has  been  remarkable  in  the  discharge  of 
its  duties  by  a  moderation  and  humane  regard  to  fairness, 
which  prove  it  to  have  thoroughly  grasped  the  higher 
sense  of  its  responsible  and  so  often  painful  functions. 
It  could  not  be  otherwise  in  a  country  where  the  common 
people  call  prisoners  of  all  kinds,  without  distinction  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  231 

rank  or  degree  of  criminality,  by  a  generic  name  mean- 
ing "  unhappy  ones,"  but  conveying  a  shade  of  infinitely 
deeper  and  tenderer  pity  than  can  be  rendered  by  the 
English  word.  When  the  chained  gangs  of  malefactors 
— and  alas  !  political  convicts  were  not  exempted  from 
the  practice — used  to  be  led  across  the  whole  Empire  on 
their  endless,  weary  march  to  Siberia,  the  population  of 
the  villages  would  pour  out  to  meet  them,  and  may  be 
escort  them  a  short  distance,  not  with  insults  and  impre- 
cations, but  with  gentle  words  and  outstretched  offerings 
of  food  and  even  money.  Now  that  convict  trains  and 
convict  cars  run  on  all  the  lines,  and  have  done  away  with 
this  long  preliminary  torture,  popular  sympathy  still  as- 
serts itself  at  the  railway  stations,  and  many  a  douceur 
of  tobacco,  delicate  wheaten  bread,  or  small  coins,  is 
handed  in  at  the  windows. 

Siberia  !  the  mines!  Horror-laden,  these  words  loom 
out  mysteriously,  an  awful  impersonation  of  the  great 
bleak  North,  which  appears  in  a  vague  remoteness,  as  a 
limbo  of  punishment,  desolation  and  despair  !  And  truly 
it  were  difficult  to  overrate  the  dreadful  import  of  those 
names.  The  vast  arctic  continent  with  its  huge,  slug- 
gish, silent  rivers,  its  immense  lowering  forests  teeming 
with  fur-bearing  game,  its  stilt  more  immense  expanses  of 
eternally  snow-bound  plains,  its  hidden  ore,  its  convict 
colonies,  is  not  a  cheerful  picture  to  contemplate,  at  least 
not  this  side  of  the  picture.  But  there  is  another  side  to 
it.  The  statesman  and  political  economist  sees  in  this 
gigantic  appendage  to  Russia  a  great  promise  for  the 
future,  a  rich  reserve  of  potential  resources.  He  watches 
rejoicingly  its  growing  cities,  its  incipient  colonization, 
its  developing  industrial  and  commercial  enterprise,  the 
progress  of  culture  which  slowly  but  surely  spreads, 
"brinsniur  with  it  its  thousand  demands  of  intellectual  and 

c     o  t 

material  refinement,    where    till    lately   money-making 


232  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

reigned  supreme  in  its  most  vulgar,  unmitigated  coarse- 
ness. And  he  knows  that  these  results  are  in  great  part 
effected  by  the  influx  of  the  Russian  element  by  means 
of  convict  transportation.  It  would  take  me  far  beyond 
my  present  limits,  and  away  from  my  present  theme,  to 
discuss  this  very  extensive  and  intricate  subject.  But  it 
will  not  be  inconsistent  with  either  to  attempt  a  sketch  of 
the  probable  future  career  of  the  hundreds  of  young  men 
who  of  late  years  have  trodden  the  long,  dreary  road  to 
the  far  East. 

Let  us  follow  those  whose  doom  is  heaviest.  Few  of 
them — probably  none — will  end  their  allotted  term  at 
the  mines  or  State  factories.  An  untimely  death  will 
doubtless  end  the  sufferings  of  man}7,  enfeebled  from  ill 
health  brought  on  or  aggravated  by  confinement,  hard- 
ships, or  climate,  before  the  tardy  hand  of  mercy  can 
reach  them.  Yet,  wonderful  to  say,  many  more  survive 
the  horrors  of  the  first  years  than  would  seem  possible 
for  men  of  gentle  nurture  and  urihardened  body.  If 
they  are  resigned  and  quietly  behaved,  they  will  after  a 
while — three,  four,  or  five  years  instead  of  the  fifteen  or 
twenty  of  their  sentence — be  brought  under  one  of  the 
so-called  "  gracious  manifestoes  "  which  are  always  being 
issued  on  occasion  of  birthdays,  births,  marriages,  etc., 
in  the  Emperor's  immediate  family,  and  transferred  to 
some  one  of  the  convict  colonies,  from  which  in  due 
time  they  will  be  released  in  like  manner  and  allowed  to 
live  within  some  particular  rural  district,  at  a  great  dis- 
tance from  city  or  town,  and  under  strict  surveillance  of 
the  local  police.  Gradually  the  range  widens,  till  it 
comprises  district  towns  ;  the  surveillance  is  lightened  ;  at 
last  the  capital  of  the  Government  itself  is  opened  to 
the  half-pardoned  convict,  and  with  it  society  and  re- 
sources of  every  kind.  Society,  indeed,  is  apt  to  lionize 
him.  It  now  depends  in  a  great  measure  on  himself,  his 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  233 

good  sense  and  abilities,  to  shape  his  further  fortunes. 
Men  of  education  and  scientific  or  technical  attainments 
are  in  as  great  demand,  and  for  the  same  reasons,  in  our 
far  east  as  in  the  far  west  of  this  country.  And  when 
by  the  end  of  ten  or  twelve  years,  as  is  generally  the 
case,  and  after  having  previously  been  transferred  to  the 
more  populous  and  civilized  western  Governments,  the 
political  convict  is  restored  to  his  rank  and  privileges, 
freed  from  all  disabilities  and  finally  recalled  from  ban- 
ishment, it  is  by  no  means  rare  to  see  him  return  to  the 
shores  of  the  Baikal  of  his  own  free  will,  to  settle  there 
for  life.  I  have  known  such  lawyers,  physicians,  engi- 
neers, miners — able  and  energetic  men,  who  had  come  to 
love  the  wilderness,  with  its  wide  openings,  its  large  hos- 
pitality, its  manifold  possibilities,  and  would  not  have 
exchanged  it,  except  on  compulsion,  for  what  they  had 
already  learned  to  call  the  cold,  narrow  spirit  of  the  over- 
crowded cities  of  the  old  world  ;  though  heaven  knows 
they  need  not  have  objected  to  any  portion  of  even  old 
Russia  on  account  of  over-crowding  !  One  young  law- 
yer in  particular  do  I  remember.  He  was  little  over 
thirty,  sturdy  of  frame,  and  keen  of  look  ;  his  manners 
had  lost  the  polish  of  his  early  social  training,  and  ac- 
quired a  certain  not  unpleasing  self-relying  nonchalance. 
He  had  come  to  St.  Petersburg  on  a  hurried  trip  to  see 
his  friends,  assert  his  newly-recovered  rights,  and  trans- 
act some  business  ;  but  all  his  thoughts  were  centred  on 
a  speedy  return  to  Irkoutsk,  where  he  had  left  a  promis- 
ing and  already  flourishing  practice,  some  half-started 
ventures  in  JL  mining  enterprise,  and,  as  he  almost  hinted, 
a  fairer  attraction  than  all  these,  in  the  form  of  a  well- 
dowered  daughter  of  some  wealthy  merchant.  He  was 
so  enthusiastic  in  his  descriptions  as  almost  to  become 
poetical,  and  every  day  he  was  detained  in  the  capital 
appeared  to  him  a  real  loss.  Such  political  exiles  as  are 


234  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

not  deprived  of  their  liberty,  but  only  bound  to  reside 
within  certain  assigned  districts,  of  course  have  all  the 
more  chances  in  their  favor.  The  intercession  of  friends 
at  home  also  does  much  to  shorten  their  term  and  hasten 
their  transfer  to  cities  or  more  habitable  regions,  if  thejr 
behave  judiciously,  and  have  not  the  exceptional  ill-luck 
of  falling  under  the  rule  of  some  of  those  ignorant  and 
wantonly  brutal  officials,  whose  number  diminishes  with 
every  year,  and  who  will  soon  live  only  in  local  traditions, 
the  indignant  records  of  the  contemporary  press,  or  the 
memoirs  of  some  prisoners  endowed  with  literary  talent. 

The  assassination  of  our  Emperor,  Alexander  II.,  is  of 
too  recent  occurrence,  the  particulars  of  which,  and  of 
the  trial  of  his  murderers  are  too  well  known  by  all  the 
civilized  world  for  me  to  enter  upon  a  consideration  of 
any  of  the  circumstances  connected  therewith.  All  Rus- 
sia mourns  his  loss  as  a  grateful  child  would  that  of  a  kind 
and  indulgent  father. 

No  sovereign,  not  Elizabeth  herself,  had  done  for  his 
people  spontaneously  what  Alexander  II.  had  done  for 
his.  Splendidly  supported  by  his  nobility,  he  had  car- 
ried out  the  abolition  of  serfdom  with  a  high  hand,  with 
precipitation 'almost,  and  intolerance  of  all  gainsaying 
which  was  the  very  recklessness  of  an  honest  determina- 
tion to '-do  right  quickly,  and  at  all  cost.  This  gigantic 
act  was  followed,  with  scarce  breathing  time  between,  by 
one  of  hardly  less  importance — the  judicial  reform,  in- 
troducing open  courts  of  law  and  public  trial  by  jury. 
Then  came  the  partial  enfranchisement  of  the  press 
after  the  model,  very  imperfect  indeed,  of  the  French 
press-laws  under  Napoleon  III.,  but  expressly  announced 
as  preliminary  and  temporary.  Was  that  the  man,  was 
that  the  sovereign,  to  be  requited  with  an  assassin's  ball? 

Nothing  was  less  justifiable  than  the  shot  fired  at  the 
Emperor  in  1866,  but  so  naturally  kind-hearted  andmer- 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIB  Kill  A. 


235 


236  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ciful  was  he,  that  there  are  few  now  who  doubt  if  left 
to  himself  he  would  have  spared  the  life  of  his  murder- 
ous assailant.  Had  he  followed  the  merciful  dictates  of 
his  own  heart,  the  first  "misunderstanding"  between 
him  and  his  people  might  never  have  arisen.  If  at 
that  critical  hour  there  were  any  by  his  side  who  took 
advantage  of  the  disturbed  state  of  the  monarch's  spirit, 
thrown  off  its  balance  by  this  gratuitous,  most  unmerited 
assault,  to  whisper  to  him  counsels  of  wrath  and  reprisal, 
to  increase  their  own  importance  by  an  exaggerated  show  of 
devotion  and  alarm,  to  urge  him  into  a  course  of  general 
suspicion  and  reaction,  under  pretence  of  insuring  the 
safety  of  his  person,  endangered  by  his  too  confiding 
neglect  of  their  previous  advice — if  any  such  there  were, 
Heaven  forgive  those  men !  History  will  not,  if  she 
ever  lays  hold  of  their  names. 

A  passing  misunderstanding !  Fifteen  years  blotted 
out  of  a  country's  life !  A  couple  of  hundred  years 
from  now  posterity  will  mention  the  name  of  Alexander 
II.  with  the  reverence  of  a  martyred  saint,  and  place 
him  in  that  galaxy  of  human  satellites  whose  deeds  still 
fill  the  world  with  radiance.  But  we  are  not  posterity. 
We  are  burdened  with  affections  which  keep  us  down 
and  prevent  our  soaring  to  a  bird's-eye  view  of  our  own 
times  ;  so  we  see  the  accessories  which  will  wane  into  the 
indistinct  back-ground  of  the  ages  some  day,  but  which 
stand  out  at  present  clear  and  mournful.  A  few  hundred 
human  lives  sacrified  may  be  a  very  paltry  item  ;  hardly 
so  to  us,  however,  when  they  happen  to  be  those  of  our 
brothers,  our  sons,  our  lovers,  our  friends — of  "  our 
boys,"  in  short.  It  is  vain  that  history  sternly  points 
to  other  lands  and  other  times,  and  reminds  us  thut  with 
such  as  these,  crushed,  laid  low,  with  all  their  budding 
promise,  their  splendid  powers,  their  daring  aspirations, 
the  path  of  all  human  progress  has  been  strewn, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  interest  which  I  hope  has  been  inspired  in  the 
reader  by  a  perusal  of  the  preceding  pages,  will,  I  trust, 
increase  in  the  following  chapters  describing  my  observa- 
tions while  in  that  most  desolate,  wild  and  so  little 
known  portion  of  the  earth — Siberia. 

Looking  back  to  the  time  when  I  was  first  able  to  read 
imperfectly,  I  can  remember  my  longings  to  visit,  as  an 
adventurer,  that  wonderful  country,  about  which  so  many 
thrilling  stories  were  told  ;  of  its  vast  arctic  expanse  ;  the 
homes  of  wretched  exiles  in  eternal  isolation  from  the 
world,  as  it  were  ;  of  packs  of  hungry  wolves  chasing  or 
devouring  travellers  ;  of  how  the  wild  boar  and  Russian 
bears  are  hunted,  and  many  other  printed  relations  des- 
criptive of  Siberia's  frozen  wilderness.  Year  by  year 
this  desire  intensified,  until  the  outrages  of  Nihilism  at 
last  determined  me  upon  a  visit  to  Russia,  and  an  inves- 
tigation of  that  subject  naturally  took  me  far  into  the 
interior  of  Siberia,  w^here  my  ambitions  were  at  length 
fully  gratified. 

Before  leaving  St.  Petersburg  I  learned  by  chance  that, 
notwithstanding  the  correctness  of  my  passport,  it  would 
be  necessary  for  me  to  procure  a  special  permit  before  en- 
tering Siberia,  or  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to  return 
again  without  putting  our  minister  to  the  trouble  of  se- 
curing my  liberation  through  official  correspondence, 
237 


238 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


which  even  might  not 
be  successful.    After 
procuring  such  pass- 
port as  was  necesary 
I  took  the  train  for 
Moscow,   where    I 
spent    several     days 
viewing  things  of  in- 
terest in  that  quaint 
|  old  capital.     Among 
§  the  many    places  of 
^special  importance  I 
c  visited    in     Moscow 
£  was    the    celebrated 

<  Central  Prison, which 
g  is  a  depot  where    is 
5  collected  all   offend- 

<  ers  whether  political 
£  or     otherwise     who 

Cd 

^  have  been  sentenced 
£  to    exile    in  Siberia. 

<  It  must   be    remem- 
|  bered     that    capital 
§  punishment     is     not 

<  practiced   in    Russia 
|  except  for  high  trea- 
w  son.      Convicts    for 

other  high  crimes  are 
sentenced  to  varied 
terms  of  imprison- 
ment or  banished  to 
different  parts  of  Si- 
beria according  to 
the  degree  of  crime  ; 
vthe  most  dangerous 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA  .  239 

criminals  are  sent  far  east  to  the  mines ;  others  are 
confined  in  Siberian  prisons,  whilst  those  guilty  of 
minor  offenses  are  sent  to  swell  penal  colonies  in  vil- 
lages which  are  under  police  surveillance.  But  all  pris- 
oners sentenced  to  Siberia  are  first  brought  to  Moscow 
and  lodged  in  the  Central  Prison,  from  whence  they 
are  taken  under  convoys,  in  relays  of  generally  three 
hundred,  to  the  place  of  banishment. 

This  prison  is  constructed  to  hold  twenty-five  hundred 
convicts,  a  number  which  it  not  unfrequently  contains. 
All  the  prisoners  wear  long,  rough  coats  having  an  orange 
colored  square  patch  sewn  into  the  back.  There  are  two 
yards,  in  one  of  which  are  the  minor  criminals  unfet- 
tered, while  in  the  other  are  those  convicted  of  serious 
crimes  ;  these  wear  large  chains  on  their  feet  attached  to 
which  is  an  iron  ball  weighing  about  twelve  pounds. 

The  saddest  sights  to  bo  witnessed  at  this  prison  are 
the  wives  and  little  children  of  the  convicts,  who  have 
travelled  many  weary  miles  to  say  a  last  good-bye  to  those 
they  love,  or  who  have  decided  to  accompany  their  rela- 
tives into  exile.  The  number  of  wives  who  voluntarily 
join  their  husbands  in  banishment  is  truly  astonishing, 
and  is  a  striking  exemplification  of  that  truthful  saying: 
4< Nothing  can  equal  a  woman's  love."  The  parting 
scenes,  witnessed  almost  weekly  at  this  prison,  are  often 
inexpressibly  sad,  one  of  which  I  now  recall  only  to  re- 
awaken the  sorrowful  sympathy  I  then  experienced.  A 
young,  handsome  fellow  who,  I  was  told,  was  a  political 
offender,  had  been  brought  to  Moscow  with  a  large  party 
of  prisoners  four  days  before  I  saw  him.  While  engaged 
with  my  interpreter  making  inquiries  I  was  greatly 
startled  by  a  sudden  scream,  when,  upon  looking  around 
to  discover  the  cause,  I  saw  a  young  woman  bearing  a 
little  babe  on  her  left  arm,  while  her  right  was  clasped 


240 


IIUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


tightly  about  the  young  fellow's  neck ;  they  were  both 
crying   and  trembling   in   an   agony    of  poignant  grief. 


Amid  choking  sobs  they  talked  in  their  native  tongue, 
which  to  me  was  unintelligible,  but  I  soon  saw  that  the 
young  raau  was  expostulating  with  the  woman  about 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

something  which  only  added  to  their  already  overwhelm- 
ing sorrow.  My  interpreter  soon  gained  for  me  the  par- 
ticulars, which  were  these  :  The  young  man  was  the  hus- 
band of  the  woman  and  had  been  convicted  in  the  city  of 
Yaroslaf  upon  a  charge  of  printing  and  circulating  revo- 
lutionary literature,  his  sentence  being  hard  labor  in  the 
Siberian  mines  for  a  period  of  ten  years.  When  taken 
to  Moscow  the  young  wife  was  not  permitted  to  accom- 
pany him  on  the  train,  but  so  strong  was  her  attachment 
that  she  determined  to  see  him  at  least  once  more,  and 
gathering  up  her  little  girl  babe,  started  alone,  on  foot, 
for  Moscow,  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  miles  distant. 
Day  and  night  she  pushed  as  rapidly  along  as  her  feet 
could  carry  her  with  the  burden  of  her  child,  fearing  that 
she  might  not  arrive  before  her  husband's  departure, 
until  on  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day  she  reached  Mos- 
cow and  had  the  inexpressible  satisfaction  of  greeting  her 
shackled  and  grief-burdened  husband.  This  meeting 
served  only  to  increase  their  agony,  for  the  wife  insisted 
upon  accompanying  her  husband  into  exile,  while  he, 
with  feelings  of  wounded  pride,  could  not  consent,  and 
bade  her  return  home.  I  left  them  still  clasped  in  each 
others'  arms,  crying  bitterly,  and  never  learned  afterward 
whether  or  not  the  young  wife  became  an  exile  for  her 
husband's  sake.  Such  incidents  as  these,  however,  are 
very  common  at  the  Central  Prison,  but  they  only  pre- 
pared me  for  much  more  sorrowful  sights  which  I  was  to 
witness  in  Siberia. 

Before  leaving  Moscow  I  went  through  the  Kremlin, 
which  is  an  immense  wall,  7,280  feet  in  circumference, 
within  which  are  many,  in  fact  nearly  all,  the  interesting 
features  to  be  found  by  a  visitor  in  the  city.  In  1812, 
when  besieged  by  Napoleon,  by  command  of  Russia's 
greatest  field  marshal,  Suwarrovr,  all  of  Moscow  was 


242 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


ALEXANDER  III.  AND  THE  CZARINA  ENTERING  THE  KREMLIN  AT  MOSCOW. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  243 

burned  except  within  the  Kremlin,  but  even  this  wonder- 
ful citadel  did  not  escape  injury,  as  several  mines  were 
sprung  beneath  it  by  the  French.  Napoleon  took  pos- 
session of  the  Kremlin  and  had  his  quarters  in  the  palace, 
which  is  inside  the  walls,  but  there  being  no  means  for 
provisioning  his  army,  he  was  compelled  to  retreat  with 
the  most  disastrous  results  that  are  recorded  in  all 
history. 

The  Kremlin  is  entered  by  five  gateways,  to  each 
of  which  some  tradition  attaches.  The  "  Redeemer's 
Gate"  is  the  most  important;  over  its  arch  is  hung 
a  picture  of  Christ,  so  ancient  that  no  one  knows  its 
history  ;  many  verily  believe  that  it  was  hung  over  the 
gateway  by  the  Madonna  herself.  It  is  told  and  believed 
by  all  devout  Muscovites  that  the  French  tried  to  remove 
this  picture  because  they  thought  its  frame  was  solid  gold  ; 
to  accomplish  this,  they  placed  ladders  against  the  wall, 
but  every  attempt  to  mount  was  frustrated  by  the  ladders 
breaking;  they  next  tried  to  batter  down  the  wall  with 
cannons,  but  the  powder  would  not  ignite ;  fires  were 
then  built  under  the  cannons,  but  when  they  did  explode, 
'it  was  backward,  killing  many  artillerymen.  They 
next  tried  to  break  the  picture  down  with  stones,  but 
never  a  stone  could  bo  made  to  strike  it.  It  is  a  fact,  that 
one  of  Napoleon's  powder  trains  accidentally  exploded 
near  the  gate,  which  destroyed  many  surrounding  build- 
ings and  cracked  the  tower  and  archway  up  to  the  holy 
image,  but  the  picture  and  lamp  which  hung  before  it 
escaped  injury. 

The  buildings  inside  the  Kremlin  include  churches, 
monasteries,  jirsenals  and  museums,  all  of  the  Tartar  style 
of  architecture,  surmounted  by  belfries,  turrets,  donjons, 
spires,  sentry-boxes  fixed  upon- minarets,  domes,  watch- 
towers,  etc.,  and  having  walls  pierced  with  loop-holes 


244 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


and  crenelated  crowns  after  the  fashion  of  fortresses  in 
the  middle  ages,  the  whole  presenting  a  picture  of  great 


THE  GREAT  BELL  OF  MOSCOW,  AND  IVAN  VELIKI  ToWER. 

variety  and  pleasing  aspect.  The  best  views  of  Moscow 
are  obtained  from  the  Sparrow  Hills  (from  which  Napo- 
leon first  sighted  the  city),  the  tower,  or  from  the  Moskva 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  245 

Rekoi  bridge,  which  crosses  the  Moskva  river  near  the 
south  wall. 

The  great  tower,  Ivan  Veliki,  is  325  feet  in  height, 
which  may  be  ascended  by  a  succession  of  very  steep, 
narrow  stairways.  It  was  erected  by  Boris  Godunoff  in 
the  year  1600,  and  contains  forty-three  bells  of  various 
sizes,  some  of  which  are  pure  silver.  The  great  bell, 
"Czar  Kolokel,"  which  was  cast  in  1730,  was  hung  in 
the  tower,  but  fell  seven  years  later  when  the  upper  por- 
tion of  the  tower  was  burned.  Its  immense  weight 
caused  it  to  sink  very  deep  into  the  earth,  where  it  remained 
one  hundred  years,  until  Nicholas  I.  caused  it  to  be 
mounted  upon  a  pedestal  where  it  still  stands.  This  bell 
is  twenty-one  feet  in  height  and  weighs  400,000  pounds  ; 
its  value,  estimated  at  the  price  for  old  metal,  is 
$200,000.  A  large  piece,  broken  out  of  the  bell  by  the 
fall,  lies  beside  it,  and  the  clapper  is  in  the  chamber 
underneath. 

It  was  on  Saturday,  the  12th  of  August/that  I  left 
Moscow  for  Nijni  Novgorod,  in  the  company  of  Captain 
Spicer,  of  New  London,  Connecticut,  and  an  interpreter 
named  Smith,  who  is  a  native  of  Jersey  City,  New  Jer- 
sey, but  for  the  past  seven  years  has  been  a  resident  of 
Moscow,  where  he  acts  as  guide  and  interpreter  for 
American  visitors.  Capt.  Spicer  was  also  enroute  for  Si- 
beria, being  interested  in  the  fur  trade,  and  intending  to 
explore  northern  Siberia  in  quest  of  fur-bearing  animals. 
His  company  was  very  acceptable  to  me,  for  I  saw  only  one 
other  American  while  in  Moscow,  the  Kev.  John  Hall, 
of  the  Fifth  Avenue  Presbyterian  church,  New  York 
City,  who  was  spending  his  summer  vacation  in  Russia  ; 
and  in  Siberia  I  did  not  expect  to  meet  with  any  one  who 
could  speak  my  language. 

The  distance  from  Moscow  to  Nijni  is  273  miles,  which 
16 


246  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

is  accomplished  by  rail  in  13  hours.  I  remained  in  Nijni 
over  Sunday  and  Monday  to  attend  the  great  fair  which 
is  held  there  annually  from  August  1st  to  October  1st ; 
though  in  ordinary  times  the  town  does  not  contain  a 
population  of  more  than  45,000,  yet  during  the  fair  there 
maybe  seen  fully  200,000  persons  here  engaged  in  barter. 
The  city,  which  is  generally  called  Nijni,  to  distinguish 
it  from  Great  Novgorod,  appears  to  have  been  founded 
in  1222,  and  as  early  as  1366  fairs  were  annually  held 
there.  In  1641  a  charter  was  granted  to  the  Monastery 
of  St.  Macarius,  71  miles  below  the  town,  empowering  the 
monks  to  levy  taxes  on  the  trade  carried  on  at  Nijni.  This 
privilege  they  continued  to  enjoy,  much  to  their  gain, 
until  1751,  when  the  trade,  which  was  created  by  the 
fair,  became  so  nearly  free  that  the  revenue,  which  now 
became  the  Government's,  did  not  exceed  $500.  Statis- 
tics show  that  from  1697  to  1790  the  value  of  the  an- 
nual trade  carried  on  at  this  fair  increased  from  $60,000 
to  $22,500  000,  while  now  it  is  estimated  at  $80,000,000 
annually. 

The  town  is  situated  on  a  hill  at  the  very  center  of  that 
water  communication  which  joins  the  Caspian,  Black, 
White  and  Baltic  seas,  besides  it  is  the  eastern  terminus 
of  the  world's  railway  lines,  and  the  point  of  contact  of 
European  industry  and  Asiatic  wealth.  Below  Nijni  is  a 
vast  bottom  land  over  which  flows  in  spring  and  winter 
the  confluent  waters  of  the  Volga  and  Oka  rivers.  Dur- 
ing the  summer  season  the  waters  recede,  leaving  this  bot- 
tom of  sand  ready  for  the  purpose  to  which  it  is  so  well 
adapted.  Immediately  a  tattoo  of  hammers  begins  which 
ceases  neither  day  nor  night  until  the  whole  vast  plain  is 
covered  with  frame  shanties  of  every  conceivable  descrip- 
tion, into  which  fabrics  of  every  design  and  complexion 
are  crammed ;  the  articles  thus  exposed  at  the  fair  come 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


247 


FAMILIAR  SCENES  AT  THE  NIJM  FAIR. 


248  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

from  all  parts  of  the  Empire  as  far  east  as  Kamschatka, 
while  China,  Thibet,  Hindoostan,  Tartary,  and  even 
Japan  are  well  represented  when  the  fair  opens.  Such  a 
conglomeration  of  sights  and  smells  can  be  found  at  no 
other  place  in  the  world  as  in  Nijni ;  during  the  day-time 
there  is  a  jam  and  bustle  among  buyers  and  sellers  who 
crowd  the  sidewalks  and  streets,  so  that  passage  through, 
on  foot,  is  almost  impossible.  Beggars,  orpin-grinders, 
auctioneers,  jugglers,  performing  bears,  Punch  and  Judy, 
and  an  olla  prodrida  of  jumbling  jacks  and  catch-on-as- 
you-please  kind  of  attractions  are  crowded  in  among  the 
legitimate  features  of  the  fair.  When  night  throws  its 
shadows  over  the  bustling  scene,  there  is  a  magic  change 
in  the  panorama ;  a  million  lights  blaze  up  and  throw 
flickering  rays,  like  dancing  jimiii,  over  a  weird  en- 
semble. The  shops  are  closed  about  ten  o'clock  to  give 
place  to  a  revelry  of  chaotic  choruses.  Open  air  concerts 
are  on  every  side,  in  which  the  chief  features  are  half- 
naked  women  howling  bacchante  songs  and  kicking  at  a 
space  much  above  their  heads.  Among  these  depraved 
artistes  Circassian  girls  are  more  numerous,  those  beauties 
of  the  Caucasus  we  read  so  much  about,  but  who,  in  fact, 
are  fair  and  luscious  only  at  a  distance  of  one  thousand 
leagues  from  the  observer.  Polish  girls  are  also  plentiful 
in  these  bazaars  of  freedom,  and  as  a  class  they  are  very 
handsome.  I  saw  two  negro  women  (who  were  from 
the  West  Indies)  at  one  of  the  concerts,  who  attracted 
as  much  attention  as  an  Indian  Rajah  would  in  the  United 
States.  They  were  rated  far  above  ordinary  mortals,  and 
had  for  escorts  distinguished  government  officials,  who 
hung  on  their  words  like  bumble  bees  on  the  honey  of 
fresh  clover  blossoms. 

I  perambulated   around   through   the   fair   and   night 
scenes  until  exhausted  nature  could  perform  no  more, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


249 


when  I  retired  to  a  room  in  which  there  were  already 
thirteen  other  occupants  snoring  off  the  potations  they 


WOODEN  CHURCH  IN  NIJM-NCVGOKOD. 

had  indulged.     I  had  an  old  quilt  to  repose  on,  which 
smelt  like^a  Dutch  cheese  factory  freshly  stirred  up,  au<J 


250  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

resembled  the  last  assault  in  a  Polish  insurrection.  But 
putting  a  clothes-pin  on  my  nose,  I  lay  down  and  slept 
with  my  eyes  wide  open  to  prevent  being  surprised  by  a 
lot  of  murderers,  whom  I  very  agreeably  supposed  the 
thirteen  howling  stump-suckers  to  be. 

My  visit  to  Nijni  proper  was  much  pleasanter  because 
I  could  not  see  so  much.  The  town  has  a  Kremlin  in 
imitation  of  that  in  Moscow,  a  grim,  loose-jointed  citadel, 
having  battlemented  walls  and  mediaeval  towers  surround- 
ing a  score  or  more  of  Byzantine  churches  with  cupolas 
running  up  in  bunches  until  their  apexes  terminate  in 
gilded  crosses.  Most  of  these  churches  are  wooden  struc- 
tures, made  in  the  ornate  style  peculiar  to  Russia  and 
Turkey,  adapted  equally  well  for  devotional  exercises  or 
a  bonfire. 

All  the  large  cities  on  the  Volga  (Samara  alone  ex- 
cepted),  Saratof,  Simbirsk,  Kasan  and  Nijni-Novgorod, 
are  situated  on  the  picturesque  and  hilly  side  of  the 
Volga — that  is,  on  its  right  bank,  for  the  left  bank  is 
flat  and  featureless  throughout.  The  only  thing  which 
distinguishes  Nijni-Novgorod  from  the  others  is  that  its 
range  of  hills  is  higher  and  its  situation  consequently 
more  imposing,  while  the  intervening  country  between  the 
village  of  Podnoveye  and  Nijni  is  eminently  picturesque. 
Two  white  buildings,  the  Pajorski  Monastery  and  the 
St.  Mary's  Institution  for  girls,  are  conspicuous  amidst 
the  varied  foliage  which  surrounds  them  ;  and  the  white, 
crenellated  walls  of  the  ancient  kremlin,  creeping  up  the 
precipitous  slope  of  the  hill,  flanked  here  and  there  by 
small,  square,  minaret-shaped  towers,  with  the  old  town 
reposing  under  the  shadow  of  its  Fortress  and  looking 
down  serenely  on  the  busy  scene  below,  give  to  Nijni- 
Novgorod  an  appearance  unique  among  Eussian  cities. 
The  town  of  Nijni  consists  of  two  parts — the  old  town, 


252  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

nestling  around  its  kremlin,  and  proudly  disdainful  of 
the  commercial  advantages  offered  it  by  the  proximity  of 
two  great  rivers  ;  and  the  new  town,  consisting  of  the 
new  quays  built  along  the  right  bank  of  the  Oka,  and 
the  new  streets  which  have  sprung  up  behind  them. 
When  the  fair  is  held  at  this  town,  the  view  from  the 
Mouravieff  Tower  is  perhaps  the  most  remarkable  in  the 
world.  There,  embraced  within  the  compass  of  a  glance, 
is  the  whole  scene  of  the  Great  Fair  of  Nijni-Novgorod. 
A  huge,  flat,  sandy  plain,  flanked  by  two  great  rivers,  is 
covered  over  with  houses  of  different  colors,  mostly  red 
and  yellow,  made  of  brick  and  wood  and  matting ;  mil- 
lions of  the  world's  richest  merchandise  stored  or  strewn 
in  every  direction ;  barges  warped  along  the  quays  of 
two  rivers  still  busily  engaged  in  unshipping  their  ex- 
haustless  cargoes.  At  one  glance  you  see  all  this.  Ev- 
erywhere you  meet  outward  signs  of  the  devotion  of  the 
people,  and,  in  all  the  hurry  of  business,  a  moujik  never 
passes  a  shrine  without  stopping  and  making  the  sign  of 
the  cross.  It  will  not  be  deemed  strange,  then,  that  the 
fair  is  opened  by  a  grand  religious  ceremony  in  a  church 
in  the  great  square. 

I  left  Nijni  at  noon  on  Tuesday  by  steamer,  for  Perm, 
which  is  four  days'  journey,  or  about  six  hundred  miles. 
The  steamers  which  ply  on  the  Volga  are  all  named  after 
North  and  South  American  rivers,  but  they  resemble 
very  little  the  steamers  that  are  run  on  our  American 
waters.  Nearly  every  one  in  Russia  travels  third-class,  so 
that  there  are  three  classes  provided  for,  by  building  the 
boats  with  three  cabins,  one  above  the  other.  Our  voy- 
age was  a  particularly  delightful  one,  the  weather  being 
pleasant  and  our  steamer  moderately  fast.  The  Volga 
is  a  large  stream,  but  has  a  channel  almost  as  treacher- 
ous as  the  Missouri,  On  each  side  there  is  a  wide,  level 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  253 

stretch  of  bottom,  which  is  overflowed  during  spring 
time,  until  the  river  becomes  ninny  miles  in  width,  which 
of  course  causes  a  constant  change  of  channel. 

After  a  run  of  seventeen  hours  we  landed  at  Kasan,  a 
quaint,  old,  Asiatic  looking  town,  full  of  Tartar  people 
and  Tartar  customs,  but  I  did  not  stop  over,  as  nothing 
of  special  interest  is  to  "be  found  in  the  place.  Twenty 
miles  below  Kasan  we  came  to  the  mouth  of  the  Kama 
river,  and  here  I  was  greatly  reminded  of  the  junction 
of  the  Missouri  and  Mississippi  rivers,  as  the  appearance 
is  almost  identical.  We  left  the  Volga  and  turned  up 
the  Kama  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  so  that  a 
beautiful  view  was  afforded  of  the  meeting  of  waters  and 
a  changing  landscape.  Our  progress  was  now  less  rapid, 
for  there  was  a  strong  current  against  us.  The  scenery, 
however,  was  more  varied  than  that  along  the  Volga, 
though  at  no  place  were  there  any  high  hills,  such  as  we 
almost  constantly  pass  on  American  rivers. 

We  reached  Perm  on  Saturday  afternoon  and  were 
compelled  to  lie  over  until  Monday  morning,  as  no 
trains  leave  there  on  Saturday  evenings.  The  town  con- 
tains a  mixed  population  of  about  30,000  souls,  whose 
principal  occupation  is  handling  ore  ;  there  are  several 
reduction  works  and  also  a  Government  mint  in  the  place, 
giving  employment  to  a  large  number  of  persons.  Perm, 
though  an  old  place,  has  grown  to  importance  within  the 
last  ten  years.  Alexander  II.  conceived  the  construc- 
tion of  a  railroad  across  Siberia,  and  nearly  all  necessary 
arrangements  for  its  building  were  completed,  when  his 
tragic  death  immediately  stopped  the  enterprise.  Sev- 
eral years  had  been  spent  by  three  different  commissions 
who  were  sent  to  select  the  most  feasible  route  across  the 
Ural  mountains.  One  of  these  commissions  reported  in 
favor  of  a  route  by  way  of  Orenburg,  which,  it  was 


254 


RUSSIAN"  NIHILISM  AND 


strenuously  claimed,  would  be  more  practicable  bec 
of  its   southern    position.       The    other   commission   in 


sisted  that  the  passage  at  Nijni  Tagilsk  was  preferable, 
besides  it  would  prove  immediately  remunerative  by 
reason  of  the  large  amount  of  mineral  which  would 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  255 

be  shipped  from  the  Demidoff  mines  at  Ekaterineburg. 
These  reports  were  followed  by  a  long  period  of  indecis- 
ion on  the  part  of  the  Emperor,  who  finally  spoke  so 
favorably  of  both  routes  that  he  promised  to  give  them 
government  assistance.  The  construction  of  a  railway 
from  Perm  was  begun  first,  and  in  1878  it  was  opened 
for  traffic  from  Perm  across  the  Urals  to  Ekaterineberg,  a 
distance  of  three  hundred  miles.  Work  progressed 
more  slowly  on  the  southern  route,  and  when  the  Em- 
peror died  it  ceased  entirely,  before  any  portion  of  the 
road  was  ready  for  business. 

Perm,  like  all  other  Eussian  cities,  is  chiefly  conspicu- 
ous for  its  churches,  which  abound  on  every  side  and  are 
the  most  ornate  feature  of  the  place. 

I  left  Perm  on  Monday  morning,  and  began  my  jour- 
ney across  the  Urals,  which  I  had  supposed  were  a  range 
of  high  mountain  peaks  perpetually  covered  with  snow. 
I  was  therefore  very  much  astonished  to  find  them  hardly 
more  than  ordinary  hills,  the  highest  point  in  the  range 
being  only  5000  feet  above  sea  level.  The  scenery  was 
also  very  disappointing,  as  there  was  scarcely  any  veg- 
etation visible  except  a  forest  of  slender  pines,  with 
here  and  there  a  larch  that  seemed  too  lonesome  for 
healthy  growth. 

At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  we  had  passed  over 
the  mountains,  almost  Avithout  knowing  it,  and  stopped 
at  Nijni  Tagilsk,  where  I  left  the  train  to  visit  the  great 
Demidoff  mines  of  copper,  malachite  and  iron.  This 
place,  which  is  the  gateway  to  Asia,  lies  within  the  Sibe- 
rian line,  and  is  very  prettily  situated  at  the  base  of  the 
Ural  range.  It  is  an  important  commercial  town  of  sixty 
thousand  inhabitants,  most  of  whom  are  engaged  in 
mining.  Nearly  all  of  Russia's  iron  is  produced  here, 
and  among  the  manufactured  products  Russia-Iron  (the 


256 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  257 

process  of  which  is  a  secret  known  only  to  Tagilsk  man- 
ufacturers) is  the  principal  article.  Many  years  ago  the 
mines  were  operated  by  convict  labor,  but  Prince  Demi- 
doff  purchased  them  from  the  Government,  since  which 
time  they  have  been  worked  by  paid  miners  and  forgers. 
There  is  a  beautiful  granite  monument,  surmounted  by  a 
bronze  statue  of  Prince  Demidl)f£ ,  in  the  southern  part  of 
the  city. 

Remaining  over  at  Tagilsk  one  day,  I  proceeded  by 
rail  to  Ekaterineburg,  which  is  another  town  built  in  an 
immense  mineral  district,  but  the  principal  product  is 
malachite.  From  Tagilsk  to  Ekaterineburg  the  railroad 
runs  along  the  mountain  base ;  on  one  side  hills  green 
with  pines,  and  on  the  other  a  level  plain  stretching  away 
until  it  meets  the  horizon,  with  scarcely  an  object  to  re- 
lieve its  solitary  wilderness  of  almost  boundless  expanse. 

The  city  contains  a  population  of  thirty  thousand, 
but  more  Asiatic  than  Russian.  I  was  rejoiced  to  find 
three  Americans,  residents  of  the  place,  with  whom  I  be- 
came acquainted,  much  to  my  advantage.  These  mines, 
which  also  belong  to  the  Demidoff  descendants,  are  very 
interesting,  particularly  to  those  who  have  never  wit- 
nessed malachite  mining.  This  mineral,  of  which  I  never 
saw  any  specimens  in  America,  is  very  precious,  selling 
at  the  mines  at  from  $1  to  $5  per  pound,  according  to 
the  size  of  the  pieces.  When  polished,  the  stone  presents 
an  almost  emerald  green  and  is  very  hard. 

The  Demidoff s  pay  annually,  in  taxes  to  the  Govern- 
ment and  Commune,  $100,000,  and  employ  50,000  la- 
borers. Before  the  emancipation  they  owned  56,000 
male  serfs,  a  large  number  of  whom  still  remain  on  their 
original  estates  and  work  in  the  mines,  but  receive  ridic- 
ulously small  pay,  compared  with  wages  in  America. 
Common  laborers  roroivo  about  twenty  cents  a  day  ;  pud- 
dlers  seventy-five  cents,  and  the  best  rollers  $1.25* 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  250 

Siberia  is  rich  in  precious  stones,  and  Ekaterineburg  is 
famous  for  its  lapidists.  Very  near  the  town  are  found 
beryl,  topaz,  aqua  marine,  chrysolite,  and  other  gems  of 
great  beauty,  which  are  cut  and  set  by  jewelers  in  the 
city  and  sold  at  prices  which  I  regarded  as  wonderfully 
cheap. 


CHAPTER  XIL 

AFTER  visiting  the  malachite  mines  in  Ekaterineburg, 
I  instructed  my  guide  to  engage  a  vehicle  to  carry  us  on 
to  Tieumen,  which  was  to  be  our  next  stopping  place. 
He  was  gone  for  some  time,  and  upon  returning  told  me 
that  it  would  be  necessary  to  show  my  special  permit  to 
the  authorities  before  a  vehicle  could  be  secured.  Thus 
far  I  had  only  to  show  my  regular  passport,  but  now  I 
produced  the  special  permit  given  me  at  St.  Petersburg. 
As  the  reading  matter  on  it  was  in  Russian  (of  which  I 
was  as  ignorant  as  of  the  hieroglyphics  on  Cheops)  I  had 
little  idea  what  request  it  contained.  My  guide,  who 
could  speak  but  not  read  the  language,  took  the  paper  to 
an  officer,  who  told  us  it  was  a,  podorojna ,  or  permit  from 
the  Government  to  pass  freely  in  and  out  of  Siberia,  and 
also  containing  an  order,  addressed  to  all  post-keepers, 
to  facilitate  me  in  my  journey  by  providing  such  convey- 
ances as  I  might  desire.  We  were  now  intelligently  in- 
formed of  what  to  do,  so  in  the  evening  we  engaged  a 
larantass  and  yemstchik  for  our  journey  ;  the  former  is  a 
four-wheeled  vehicle  setting  low  like  a  phaeton,  and  hav- 
ing a  large  cover  behind,  which  may  be  raised  or  lowered 
at  will.  It  is  light,  but  drawn  by  three  horses,  the  mid- 
dle one  working  between  shafts  over  which  there  is  a 


260 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


douga,  or  broad  bow,  to  which  bells  are  often  attached  ; 
the  outside  horses  work  in  traces,  one  of  which  is  fast- 
ened to  a  shaft  and  the  other  to  the  end  of  the  spindle, 
which  extends  about  three  inches  outside  the  hub  of  the 
front  wheel.  Yemstchik  simply  means  driver. 

I  had  engaged  this  outfit  with  the  expectation  of  start- 
ing for  Tieumen  on  the  following  morning,  but  this  ar- 

O  O  O ' 

rangement  did  not  suit  either  the  owner  or  driver,  who 
insisted  on  an  immediate  departure  or  pay  for  the  time 


THE  TARANTASS. 


lost.  It  was  now  almost  eight  o'clock,  but  as  Capt. 
Spicer,  who  was  still  with  me,  felt  no  hesitancy  about 
proceeding  at  such  an  unseemly  hour,  we  made  ready  and 
took  our  places  in  the  vehicle.  Our  guide  sat  beside  the 
yemstdiik,  while  Spicer  and  I  occupied  the  one  large  seat 
inside.  Before  leaving,  however,  we  contracted  to  pay 
two  cents  a  verst,  equivalent  to  three  cents  per  mile,  for 
the  driver  and  conveyance,  a  sum  which  we  thought  was 
very  cheap. 

The  sun  had  now  sunk  well  down  behind  the  Ural  hills 
— I  can't  help  calling  them  hills  because  they  are  nothing 
more — when,  with  a  crack  of  the  whip  and  an  expression 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  261 

which  nothing  but  a  Siberian  horse  could  understand,  we 
darted  off  in  a  cloud  of  dust,  through  the  town  and  out 
upon  the  great  waste  of  a  Wonderful  country.  My  feel- 
ings were  not  altogether  pleasant,  for  so  strange  did 
everything  appear  that,  despite  myself,  visions  of  wild 
Tartar  hordes,  under  some  modern  Genghis  Khan,  would 
dart  up  in  my  imagination,  to  dispute  our  way  ;  or  else 
an  unfamiliar  sound  would  strike  my  ear  like  the  bark  of 
a  famished  wolf  calling  his  pack  to  the  pursuit. 

Along  we  flew  in  a  swift  gallop  without  for  a  moment 
slacking  pace,  passing  no  one,  nor  having  our  imageries 
relieved  by  any  pleasing  scenery ;  nothing  but  a  level, 
illimitable  expanse  of  prairie  ;  no  farms,  no  baying  dogs, 
no  lowing  cattle  nor  squeal  ing  swine  ;  the  voice  of  nature 
was  as  mute  as  the  songs  of  the  dead.  Thus  we  jour- 
neyed for  more  than  two  hours,  when  through  the  riven 
clouds  there  broke  out  a  flood  of  moonlight  by  which  we 
saw  ahead  the  outlines  of  a  house.  It  was  the  first  post- 
station  out  of  Ekaterineburg ;  our  yemstchik  drove  into 
the  yard  on  a  dash  and  then  shouting  stoi  to  his  horses, 
he  stopped  with  such  suddenness  that  my  companion  and 
I  were  thrown  forward  against  the  driver's  seat. 

We  did  not  delay  here  long,  taking  only  sufficient  time 
to  change  horses  and  drink  a  glass  of  tea.  In  this  con- 
nection I  wish  to  say  that  no  where  in  the  world  can 
such  tea  be  had  as  in  Russia  or  Siberia.  I  have  drunk 
this  delightful  beverage  in  nearly  all  parts  of  the  world, 
including  San  Francisco,  where  I  indulged  my  love  for  it 
in  a  Chinese  restaurant,  and  my  opinion  is  that  the  Chi- 
nese make  the  poorest,  while  the  Russians  make  the  best 
tea  to  be  found  anywhere  in  the  world.  The  excellence 
of  the  tea  made  in  Russia  is  partly,  if  not  wholly,  due, 
as  they  themselves  claim,  to  the  fact  that  tea  shipped 
over  water  loses  much  of  its  flavor  aiid  essential  quality. 
17 


262  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

All  tea  used  in  Russia  is  brought  over-land  from  the 
Chinese  provinces,  generally  packed  in  the  shape  of 
bricks  and  exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  there  being  a  be- 
lief that  if  packed  in  cases  it  loses  much  of  its  natural 
excellence.  Everybody  drinks  tea  in  Russia ;  if  you 
enter  the  home  of  either  prince  or  peasant  in  that  coun- 
try you  are  at  once  invited  to  drink  tea.  A  vessel  called 
a  Samovar  is  in  every  house,  which  is  kept  constantly 
heated,  in  which  tea  is  made  always  ready  for  use.  Tea 
therefore  is  the  great  national  drink  ;  but  there  is  also  a 
spirits,  distilled  from  potatoes,  called  Vodka,  which  is 
something  like  the  Irish  poteen,  that  is  a  very  popular 
drink  among  the  peasantry  and  priesthood.  So,  whether 
entertained  in  the  home  of  an  IspravniJc — a  Russian  Gov- 
ernor— or  stopping  at  a  Siberian  post-station,  you  will  be 
called  on  to  slake  thirst,  either  in  a  tipple  of  vodka  or  a 
glass  of  tea — tea  cups  are  not  used. 

After  less  than  a  half-hour's  delay  we  were  called  to 
take  our  places  in  the  vehicle  again,  when  cheerily  our 
driver  cracked  his  whip  over  the  fretting  ponies'  heads, 
and  sent  them  off  in  a  run  that  at  first  nearly  took  our 
breaths. 

It  was  now  almost  midnight,  but  still  the  gray  streaks 
of  day  and  bright  lustre  of  a  noble  moon  were  with  us. 
In  fact  at  this  season  of  the  year  there  is  scarcely  any 
night  in  the  latitude  I  was  now  travelling.  Tired  with 
so  much  pounding  as  I  had  been  subjected  to  for 
several  hours,  my  eyes  grew  languid,  but  it  seemed  that 
each  time  I  began  to  doze,  in  my  compulsory  bolt  up- 
right position,  our  driver  would  run  us  over  a  log 
with  such  disturbing  force  that  I  either  plunged  into  my 
companion  or  he  into  me.  In  fact  we  had  to  keep  awake 
that  we  might  not  butt  one  another's  brains  out. 

We    continued    in   this   rapid,    hurly-burly,    jerking, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


263 


wretchedly  uncomfortable  style  of  traveling  for  forty-one 
hours,  having  changed  horses  about  every  two  hours, 
when  at  last  we  reached  Tieumen,  which  is  two  hundred 
and  five  miles  from  Ekaterineberg.  I  was  so  sore,  stiff 

and  exhausted 
when  we  arrived  at 
Tieumen  that  I 
felt  like  a  Fakir 
who,  to  do  penance 
for  some  imagina- 
ry sin,  assumes 
one  position  with- 
fgf  out  changing,  un- 

rtil  all  his  joints 
ossify  and  refuse 
to  articulate.  The 
first  thing  I  want- 
ed was  everything 
at  once,  viz.  :  a 
bath,  something 
to  eat,  a  bed,  mus- 
tard plasters  for 
my  back  and 
knees,  ice- water  to 
drink ;  and  above 
all,  I  wanted  to 
know  how  to  get 
back  again  to 
Ekaterineburg 
without  having  to 

pi|l!l|illjilin;;,JT:.!lU:lK.<nitB»ag«pa:.;:i;.i  .. ::::.•>  &!B;i!!S«BuSmiiiiiiSi;5lteigy 

travel  in  the  manner  I  had  come. 

Fortunately  it  was  only  a  little  after  mid-day  when  we 
arrived,  and  dinner  was  ready ;  so  I  quickly  washed  my 
face,  after  first  rubbing  a  long,  broad,  deep  crick  out  of 


264  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AM) 

my  back  so  I  could  bend  over,  and  then  fell  to  with  vo- 
racious greed  to  devour  —  black-bread  and  salt.  It's 
a  way  they  have  in  that  country.  It  must,  undoubt- 
edly, be  the  product  of  some  religious  inspiration, 
for  I  can't  imagine  anything  else  potential  enough  to 
curtail  the  diet  so  extravagantly ;  but  whatever  the  cause, 
black-bread  (which  is  eaten  after  a  thick  layer  of  salt  is 
spread  over  it)  and  tea  constitute  almost  the  exclusive 
diet  of  the  native  Siberians.  By  dint  of  expostulation 
and  particularly  by  promises  of  a  large  reward,  I  ob- 
tained a  piece  of  steak,  which  was  as  succulent  and  tender 
as  any  I  ever  before  ate.  It  is  astonishing  how  these 
people  subsist  on  so  limited  a  diet,  and  my  wonder  was 
all  the  more  increased  when  I  learned  that  choice  steaks 
can  be  had  for  four  cents  a  pound,  while  fish  are  even 
cheaper.  There  is  very  little  agriculture  in  Siberia,  the 
occupations  chiefly  followed  being  mining,  inn  keeping, 
fishing  and  raising  stock.  Immense  herds  of  horses  and 
cattle  roam  all  over  the  country,  the  property  of  herds- 
men who  raise  them  for  export,  home  consumption 
being  scarcely  thought  of. 

I  was  so  completely  used  up,  so  to  speak,  that  after 
dinner  I  called  to  the  landlord  to  show  me  a  bed,  into 
which  I  soon  cast  my  wearied  body  and  soul.  After  a 
two  hours'  rest,  I  awakened  and,  though  still  in  an  ex- 
hausted condition,  reflected  upon  how  precious  was  my 
time,  arose,  took  another  glass  of  tea,  and  sauntered  out 
into  the  city  in  quest  of  information. 

Tieumen  is  situated  on  the  Tura  river,  which  flows  by 
the  Tobol  into  the  Irtysh  and  Obi,  and  it  is  at  this  point 
that  steamboat  conveyance  is  taken  to  those  rivers,  and 
to  the  towns  of  Tobolsk,  Omsk  and  Tomsk.  The  town 
is  subject  to  great  overflows  every  spring  when  the  ice 
breaks  up,  and  gorging  below  the  bridge  sometimes 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


265 


266  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

inundates  the  whole  city.  It  has  a  population  of  16,- 
000,  with  thriving  manufactories  of  iron,  earthenware, 
glass,  cloth,  carpets  and  leather;  but  the  houses  are 
mostly  built  of  wood,  and  the  place  has  a  mean  and 
dreary  aspect.  It  is  in  one  respect  the  most  import- 
ant town  in  western  Siberia,  for  it  is  here  that  all 
the  prisoners  are  first  brought  before  their  distri- 
bution to  the  penal  settlements  and  mines  further  east. 
There  is  one  building  in  the  city,  devoted  to  educa- 
tional purposes,  which  cost  $100,000,  and  is  the  finest 
structure  in  all  Siberia ;  two  specially  important  facts 
connected  with  this  institution  are,  that  it  was  built  by  a 
man  who  started  with  nothing,  has  acquired  a  large 
fortune  in  Siberia,  and  donated  the  building  to  the 
Government ;  the  other  peculiarity  is  found  in  the  build- 
ing being  furnished  throughout  with  American  furniture, 
as  is  also  the  home  of  the  liberal  donor. 

I  found  also  here  in  Tieumen  an  American  gentleman 
who  very  kindly  introduced  me  to  the  Governor  and  sev- 
eral other  functionaries,  with  whom  I  became  intimate 
enough  to  announce  the  object  of  my  visit  and  to  request 
of  them  such  information  as  I  needed. 

To  a  question  which  I  asked  the  Governor  respecting 
the  origin  of  punishment  of  offenders  by  exile,  he  made 
answer  : 

44 1  do  not  know  exactly  when  the  practice  begun,  but 
a  well-known  writer,  M.  Reclus,  says  the  first  degree  of 
banishment  was  promulgated  by  Boris  Godunoff  when,  in 
1591,  he  sent  nearly  five  hundred  of  the  Uglitch  insur- 
rectionists into  exile,  locating  them  not  far  from  Tieu- 
men. This  story,  however,  is  more  traditional  than  his- 
torical, though  it  may  be  true.  But  it  is  an  established 
fact  that  near  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  several 
thousand  of  Little  Russians,  who  had  revolted  in  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  267 

Ukarine  and  were  overcome  by  Great  Russia,  were  sent, 
in  chains,  to  various  parts  of  Siberia.  After  this,  trans- 
portation for  all  manner  of  serious  offenses  became  com- 
mon. A  large  number  of  religious  dissenters,  with  their 
families,  were  deported  in  1682,  and  compelled  to  settle 
in  the  Baikal  district.  Peter  the  Great  also  banished 
many  of  the  Strelitz,  a  tribe  from  southern  Russia,  who 
were  so  wedded  to  bows  and  arrows  that  they  refused  to 
use  any  other  arms.  They  caused  no  little  trouble  by 
their  treachery,  and  finally  rebelled  against  their  sov- 
ereign. During  the  reign  of  Elizabeth  many  distin- 
guished persons,  accused  of  political  unfaithfulness,  were 
sent  to  the  far  eastern  provinces,  among  whom  were 
Tolstoi,  Munich,  Menchikoff,  Dolgornki,  Biron,  &c., 
who  were  afterward  permitted  to  return.  In  1758  began 
the  first  deportation  of  Poles,  but  under  Catharine  II. 
thousands  of  these  unhappy  people  were  thrust  in  to  exile. 
Nine  hundred,  who  had  served  under  Napoleon,  were 
convicted  of  treason  and  sent  to  the  Yakoutsk  district. 
In  1826  three  thousand  Decembrists,  who  tried  to  assas- 
sinate Nicholas  and  provide  a  constitution,  were  sent  to 
Siberia,  followed  in  1830  by  a  deportation  of  80,000 
Poles." 

The  original  idea  of  Godunoff ,  which  was  to  use  Si- 
beria as  a  place  of  punishment,  grew  into  a  fixed  purpose 
under  Nicholas  I.  and  Alexander  II.,  to  not  only  banish 
offenders  merely  to  punish  them,  but  to  make  banishment 
a  means  for  settling  Siberia.  They  very  correctly  argued 
that  here  was  a  larger  portion  of  the  Empire,  rich  in  min- 
erals and  boundless  in  agricultural  possibilities,  lying  idle 
because  none  would  settle  in  it.  They  therefore  con- 
cluded to  enforce  an  industrial  occupation  of  the  cauntry. 
To  this  end  not  only  were  murderers  and  political  offend- 
ers sent  to  Siberia,  but  colonies  were  established  by  the 


268  liUsSlAN  NIHILISM  AND 

deportation  of  those  guilty  of  petty  crimes.  A  privilege 
was  given  the  peasantry  to  establish  village  courts,  called 
Zemsta,  to  which  they  might  summon,  or  forcibly  take, 
any  one  of  their  number  charged  with  being  untrue  or  im- 
provident, incorrigibly  bad,  lazy,  a  common  drunkard,  or 
village  nuisance,  and  upon  conviction  he  could  be  sent  to 
Siberia.  This  practice  was  very  extensive  a  few  years 
ago,  and  is  not  uncommon  now.  Such  convicts,  how- 
ever, are  not  held,  as  prisoners,  to  any  special  labor,  but 
are  sent  to  increase  colonies  that  pursue  any  calling  they 
choose  to  obtain  a  living. 

The  Governor  further  told  me  that  there  are  thirty- 
four  offenses  punishable  by  transportation  to  Siberia. 
The  first  and  greatest  crime  in  Russia  is  treason,  which 
is  punished  by  execution,  but  for  no  other  crime  is  the 
death  penalty  inflicted.  The  following  offenses  are  pun- 
ished by  exile :  insubordination  to  lawful  authority ; 
stealing  official  documents  ;  .escape  or  abetting  the  es- 
cape of  prisoners  ;  embezzlement  of  Government  funds  ; 
forgery;  blasphemy  (though  it  is  a  dead-letter  law); 
dissent  and  heresy  (rarely  enforced)  ;  sheltering  or 
giving  aid  to  escaping  convicts ;  counterfeiting ;  being 
taken  on  suspicion  and  found  without  a  passport ;  va- 
grancy, coupled  with  suspicious  conduct;  murder  or 
accessory  thereto  ;  attempted  suicide  ;  mayhem  ;  assault 
with  deadly  weapon  ;  seduction  and  rape  ;  subornation  ; 
illegal  holding  or  transfer  of  property  ;  arson  ;  burglary  ; 
theft ;  horse-stealing  ;  debt ;  dishonoring  the  Emperor's 
name  ;  assuming  false  titles  ;  beastiality  ;  usury  or  extor- 
tion (rarely  enforced,  though  a  common  offense)  ;  eluding 
military  service;  smuggling;  illicit  distilling;  and  the 
practices  of  the  Scoptsi,  of  which  I  will  write  fully  here- 
after, when  describing  their  settlement. 

I  was  told  that  for  the  past  ten  years,  the  number  of 


EXJLE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA, 


269 


270  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANB 

exiles  sent  annually  to  Siberia  was  about  20,000,  of 
which  12,000  are  sent  to  the  eastern  district  under  sen- 
tence of  hard  labor  in  the  mines.  I  was  permitted  to 
visit  the  Tieumen  prison,  in  which  there  were  confined 
nearly  five  hundred  prisoners,  awaiting  orders  to  be  sent 
further  east.  Of  these  five  hundred  there  were  nearly 
one  hundred  who  could  read  and  write.  This  indicates 
the  intelligence  of  the  criminals  sent  into  exile.  It  is  a 
statistical  fact  that  of  Russia's  entire  population  only 
five  per  cent,  can  read  and  write,  the  lowest  average  of 
education  to  be  found  in  any  civilized  country  on  the 
globe.  Now,  when  we  compare  this  fact  with  the  prison- 
ers at  Tieumen,  of  whom  twenty  per  cent,  could  read 
and  write,  we  are  forced  to  the  irresistible  conclusion 
that  Russia's  criminals  are  from  her  best  educated  peo- 
ple. 

All  prisoners  sent  from  Moscow  are  taken  by  rail  to 
Nijni-Novgorod,  where  they  embark  on  a  barge,  which 
is  towed  by  steamer  to  Perm.  This  barge  is  built  ex- 
pressly for  the  purpose  and  will  carry  from  seven  to  eight 
hundred. 

From  Perm  they  are  transported  by  rail  to  Ekaterine- 
berg,  and  from  that  point  they  are  taken  to  Tieumen  by 
wagons.  Why  they  are  not  required  to  walk  this  latter 
distance  I  cannot  understand,  particularly  since  beyond 
Tieumen  the  prisoners  are  compelled  to  walk  to  what- 
ever place  they  are  destined,  which  is  not  generally  less 
than  2,000  miles  further  east.  Sometimes  it  occurs  that 
there  is  special  haste  to  get  the  prisoners  to  Irkout.sk  or 
Yakoutsk  mines,  before  severe  weather  begins  in  the  fall, 
and  for  purposes  of  expedition  they  are  taken  by  barge 
on  the  Irtysh  and  Obi  to  Tomsk,  from  which  latter  place, 
however,  they  must  walk  voluntarily  or  be  driven  like 
refractory  brutes  under  the  stinging  lash. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  271 

On  the  morning  after  my  arrival  in  Tieumen,  as  I  had 
been  told  by  the  Governor  the  previous  evening,  a  party 
of  three  hundred  prisoners  were  taken  out  of  their 


a 

PRISONERS  LEAVING  TIEUMEN  FOR  EASTERN   SIBERIA. 

stockade  and  started  to  Chita,  which  is  a  penal  settle- 
ment in  the  Trans-Baikal.  It  was  raining  very  hard,  but 
the  element*  were  not  permitted  to  interfere  with  the 


272  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

programme.  About  fifty  soldiers  acted  as  convoy-guard, 
who  marched  out  on  foot  in  two  files  with  the  exiles  be- 
tween them,  followed  by  weeping  women  and  a  large 
number  of  curious  citizens.  At  the  suburbs  of  the  place 
horses  were  in  waiting  for  the  soldiers,  but  there  was 
nothing  but  a  hard,  foot  journey  before  the  unfortunate 
prisoners,  about  one-third  of  whom  carried  heavy  chains 
on  their  wrists  and  ankles.  I  was  affected  almost  to 
tears  by  the  sight,  every  phase  of  which  was  inexpres- 
sibly sad. 

I  stayed  over  at  Tieumen  one  day  longer  to  gather 
some  additional  facts  and  wait  for  more  clement  weather. 
Capt.  Spicer  had  intended  to  leave  me  here  and  start  by 
tarantass  northward,  but  concluded  to  accompany  me  to 
Tobolsk,  where  he  could  take  a  steamer  on  the  Irtysh, 
and  have  a  journey  to  the  Grulf  of  Obi,  from  which  point 
he  decided  to  begin  skirting  Siberia  across  to  Kam- 
schatka.  On  the  following  day  we  engaged  a  new  kind  of 
conveyance,  as  from  appearance  it  promised  more  com- 
fort than  we  had  found  in  the  tarantass.  This  vehicle 
was  what  the  Russians  call  a  tumbril;  I  suppose  they  de- 
rive the  name  from  the  English  tumble,  because  it  goes 
tumbling  over  the  road  like  an  acrobat,  bounding  up  in 
dreadful  jerks  and  coming  down  like  a  pile  driver. 

A  small  steamer  plies  between  Tieumen  and  Tobolsk, 
but  at  uncertain  intervals,  and  gets  through  with  greater 
uncertainty,  so  we  adopted  the  overland  route  and  started 
about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  road  was 
very  muddy  and  our  progress  slow,  which  saved  us  from 
the  sore  affliction  we  suffered  in  the  rapid  tarantass.  At 
thejirst  station  we  halted  to  change"horses,  the  post- 
.  keeper  told  us  that  the  roads  were  almost  impassable  and 
that  a  creek,  five  versts  further  on,  was-  so  swollen  that 
crossing  would  be  very  dangerous.  Nevertheless  we  con- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA 


273 


274  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM 

eluded  to  push  on  and  meet  whatever  adventure  chance 
might  visit  upon  us.  We  drove  with  all  possible  speed, 
in  order  to  reach  the  creek  before  darkness  set  in,  as  ab- 
sence of  light  always  multiplies  dangers.  We  ar- 
rived at  the  stream  about  seven  o'clock  and  found  it 
rushing  madly  over  its  banks,  carrying  driftwood  of  logs, 
trees,  brush,  etc.,  so  that  our  resolution  gave  way  and  we 
thought  of  returning  to  the'  post-station  to  spend  the 
night.  Before  deciding  finally,  however,  a  moujiJc — local 
resident  peasant — appeared ,  whom  we  accosted  and  asked 
if  there  were  any  ferry-boat  available  that  could  set  us 
across.  He  admitted  that  much  danger  would  be  in- 
curred in  an  attempt  to  pass  the  stream,  but  agreed  to 
get  a  boat,  which  lay  moored  one  mile  further  up  the 
creek,  and  set  us  over  for  five  roubles.  This  proposition 
at  once  decided  us,  and  without  further  delay  we  drove 
up  to  where  the  boat  lay  and  prepared  to  embark.  The 
boat  was  a  flat  scow  with  gunwales  not  more  than  a  foot 
out  of  water,  and  that  it  had  been  put  to  much  service 
was  evidenced  by  the  rot  that  had  struck  in  and  weakened 
every  board  about  it.  The  horses  were  so  tractable,  for- 
tunately, that  no  difficulty  was  experienced  in  getting 
afloat.  The  moujik  used  a  long  pole  to  push  the  boat 
off,  but  once  getting  started,  our  frail  craft  begun  to 
spin  around  like  leaves  in  a  whirlwind.  It  now  looked 
doubtful  about  getting  across  without  swimming,  but 
manfully  we  all  pushed  with  poles,  by  which  we  managed 
to  near  the  opposite  shore  about  six  miles  below  the  point 
from  whence  we  started.  Prospects  were  brightening 
every  moment,  when  suddenly  our  boat  struck  a  pro- 
jecting log  —  they  are  called  sawyers  by  Mississippi 
river  pilots — and  before  we  could  shift  our  cuds  of  to- 
bacco, over  we  went,  tumbril,  horses  and  men,  into  the 
water,  while  the  boat,  bottom  side  up,  went  on  down  the 


EXILZ  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  275 

stream,  still  spinning  around  like  a  graceful  coquette  who 
has  just  jilted  her  lover.  It  so  happened  that  the  water, 
where  we  were  capsized,  was  not  more  than  three  feet 
deep,  and  we  were  able  to  keep  our  feet.  My  first  act 
was  to  grab  two  of  the  horses  by  their  bridles,  while 
Capt.  Spicer  and  our  two  men  seized  the  tumbril  and 
righted  it ;  by  skilful  and  instantaneous  action  we  pre- 
vented the  horses  from  becoming  tangled,  and  soon  had 
the  satisfaction  of  getting  on  shore  with  no  other  incon- 
venience than  wet  clothing.  But  our  more  serious  diffi- 
culty was  yet  to  come,  for  it  had  now  grown  quite  dark 
and  was  still  threatening  rain.  We  had  landed  and  were 
on  solid  earth,  but  our  surroundings  were  something  like 
the  jungles  of  Central  Africa.  There  was  no  semblance 
of  a  road  leading  out  of  this  swampy,  brush-grown  place, 
nor  did  we  have  so  much  as  a  match  to  light  our  way. 
But,  figuratively  speaking,  shutting  our  eyes  and  trusting 
to  Providence,  we  started  the  horses  along  in  the  direc- 
tion we  supposed  the  road  lay.  After  about  one  hour  or 
more  of  this  delightful  pic-nicing  excursion  in  the  garden 
of  the  gods,  we  found  ourselves — lost.  I  had  a  compass 
in  my  pocket,  but  it  might  as  well  have  been  on  top  of 
the  north-pole,  for  having  neither  a  light  nor  the  eyes  of 
a  nocturnal  varmint,  we  "  couldn't  see  the  point."  With 
nothing  but  wet  clothes  and  wetter  blankets  our  condi- 
tion was  similar  to  that  which  the  man  fell  into  who  in- 
vented a  new  oath.  But,  as  if  dissatisfied  with  our  cir- 
cumstances, old  Pluvius  pulled  out  the  stop-cocks  of 
heaven  and  deluged  us  with  a  rain  of  nearly  six  hours 
duration,  while  the  frogs,  between  dashes  of  rain,  croaked 
all  manner  of  requiems  around  about  us.  If  a  pack  of 
wolves  had  descended  upon  us  about  this  time  I  would 
have  gladly  assisted  them  to  ravish  my  body,  and  yet 
every  strange  sound  that  seemed  to  presage  an  attack 


276  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

from  these  chronically  hungry  desperadoes,  produced  a 
momentary  fear  that  made  us  forget  our  other  misery. 

Nothing  could  be  done  except  face  the  artillery  of  mis- 
fortune, so  we  unhitched  the  horses  and  made  them  fast 
to  our  vehicle.  Then  came  the  rub  of  standing  round 
and  taking  turns  in  saying  such  bad  words  as  a  distressed 
soul  may  be  inspired  to  utter  under  the  circumstances. 

Morning  broke  at  last,  but  such  a  morning  as  would 
shame  creation,  for  the  rain  still  poured  down,  until  what 
wasn't  mud  was  water,  and  what  wasn't  water  was  a  dis- 
tillation of  exquisite  melancholy.  Frozen  and  drowned 
though  we  were,  there  was  still  enough  aggravation  left 
hi  our  natures  to  stimulate  us  to  renewed  endeavors  to 
get  out  of  the  woods — or  purgatory,  which  is  a  more 
appropriate  term. 

So  confused  were  we  by  the  desperate  experience  un- 
dergone that  wretched  night  that  it  was  late  in  the  after- 
noon before  we  found  the  road  again,  and  when  we  did 
tind  it  there  was  nothing  to  make  us  proud  except  the 
realization  that  we  still  lived.  Through  mud  up  to  the 
axles  we  plodded  along,  hungry,  exhausted,  wet,  mad  and 
intensely  miserable,  until  twelve  o'clock  the  following 
night  before  reaching  the  next  station.  So  thoroughly 
worn  out  was  I  that  upon  entering  the  station  I  threw 
myself  upon  a  bench  and  did  not  stir  again  until  morn- 
ing, though  the  master  tried  every  way  to  arouse  and 
direct  me  to  a  comfortable  bed.  The  opiate  of  exhaus- 
tion was  so  powerful,  in  fact,  that  I  no  longer  felt  the 
wet  clothes  that  were  on  me,  or  took  time  to  wish  I  was 
in  dear  America. 

Renewing  our  journey  about  noon,  the  sun  came  out 
again,  and  we  gradually  forgot  the  miseries  through 
which  we  had  passed  and  began  to  find,  one  by  one,  some 
little  pleasures  in  life.  The  roads  also  gradually  became 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  277 

more  tolerable,  while  along  the  highway  we  met  occa- 
sional groups  of  Tartars,  and  passed  through  Tartar  vil- 
lages which  presented  many  whimsical  characteristics. 
In  Siberia  (where  less  than  one-fifth  the  population  is 
Russian)  as  in  Russia,  we  found  images  of  the  Madonna 
hung  up  over  doors,  in  windows,  on  walls,  nailed  to 
posts,  strung  up  before  ordinary  village  notices,  and,  in 
short,  we  found  them  everywhere,  while  little  candles 
were  burning  before  them  all.  The  Tartars  are  very  nu- 
merous throughout  Siberia  and  are  proud  of  their  history, 
which  is  crowded  with  adventure  and  red  with  blood. 
They  are  the  same  people  as  those  who,  under  Genghis 
Khan,  in  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries,  over- 
ran all  of  northern  Asia  and  then  penetrated  Russia, 
striking  the  Muscovites  such  strong  blows  that  they  al- 
most accomplished  the  conquest  of  that  nation. 

The  Tartar  women  still  hold  to  the  ancient  Moslem 
practice  of  wearing  veils  over  their  faces  when  strangers 
are  near,  which,  I  must  say,  is  very  kind  of  them,  for  as 
a  stranger  I  speak,  who  having  seen  some  few  Tartar 
faces,  am  very  thankful  that  I  was  not  permitted  to  see 
more  ;  a  Chinese  god  is  beautiful  when  brought  in  com- 
parison with  the  most  distinguished  Tartar  belle. 


CHAPTER 

TOBOLSK  is  but  little  more  than  one  day's  journey 
from  Tieumen  by  steamer,  but  we  encountered  so  many 
difficulties  that  it  was  more  than  two  days  before  we 
reached  the  city,  though  the  distance  by  land  is  but  little 
more  than  half  what  it  is  by  water. 

I  had  now  reached  one  of  the  great  Siberian  prisons, 
18 


278 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


and  my  investigations  became  more  interesting  here  be- 
cause of  immediate  contact  with  some  initiatory  horrors 
which  previous  study  and  reading  had  partly  prepared 
me  for. 

Tobolsk  is  a  city  of  nearly  40,000  inhabitants  and  was 
the  first  capital  of 
Siberia,  the  whole  of 
that  enormous  terri- 
tory being  acquired 
in  seventy  years  of 
the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. The  town  was 
originally  built  on  a 
high  hill,  having  pre- 
cipitous sides,  and 
around  it  was  a  strong 
wall  over  the  ramp- 
arts of  which  still 
glisten  and  frown 
several  large  cannons. 
Entrance  to  this  part 
of  the  city  is  through 
fortress  gates,  to 
gain  which  passage 
must  be  made  up  a 
steep,  winding  road- 
way. As  the  town 
grew,  for  lack  of 
space  on  the  hill, 
building  began  on  the 
plain  below,  until  now  the  lower  portion  of  the  city  is  larger 
and  more  regularly  built  than  that  on  the  hill. 

The  population  of  Tobolsk  is  composed  of  Eussians, 
Tartars  and  Germans,  the  latter  race  being  much  more 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  279 

numerous  than  circumstances  permitted  me  to  believe 
until  I  had  thoroughly  convinced  myself.  They  are  an 
object  of  bitter  prejudice  to  the  Russians,  who  very  fre- 
quently visit  upon  them  rank  injustice  ;  knowing  this,  I 
was  very  much  surprised  that  the  Germans  composed 
nearly  one-sixth  of  the  entire  population.  Being  some- 
what familiar  with  the  German  language,  I  found  it  now 
very  serviceable  to  me,  for  I  secured  introductions  to 
several  prominent  persons  of  that  nationality  who  took 
much  pains  to  make  my  visit  both  pleasant  and  profitable. 

In  Upper  Tobolsk  is  a  fine  and  celebrated  cathedral, 
near  which  is  hung  on  a  tripod  the  Ugtitch  bell,  with 
which  is  connected  a  singular  history,  to  this  effect :  The 
bell  was  orginally  in  the  turret  of  a  cathedral  in  Uglitch, 
Russia,  where,  for  many  years,  it  called  the  faithful  to 
assemble  for  worship.  But  in  1591  a  great  insurrection 
took  place  in  Uglitch,  against  the  Czar  Godunoff,  on 
which  occasion  the  rebels  used  this  bell  to  signal  their 
uprising  and  attack  upon  the  Goverment  officers.  These 
insurrectionists  were  very  strong  in  numbers,  and  were 
not  overpowered  for  several  months,  but  when  their  sub- 
jection was  at  last  accomplished,  Boris  Godunoff  issued 
an  order  of  punishment  against  the  bell,  in  obedience  to 
which  it  was  thrown  down  from  the  turret,  its  ears  were 
broken  off,  and  then  a  company  of  men  were  made  to 
publicly  flog  it.  To  this  was  added  a  decree  of  banish- 
ment, so  that  the  bell  was  taken,  with  several  thousand 
of  the  insurrectionists  sent  into  exile,  to  the  district  of 
Tobolsk.  The  disgrace  which  thus  fell  upon  the  bell  for 
aiding  the  rebels,  has  been  so  far  removed  now  that  it  is 
again  used  for  calling  Muscovites  to  prayers. 

There  is  very  little  of  interest  to  be  seen  in  Tobolsk 
outside  the  prisons,  which  are  three  in  number,  and  gen- 
erally contain  from  1,000  to  1,200  prisoners.  They  are 


280  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

located  near  a  large  pleasure  garden,  and  directly  under 
a  commanding  view  from  the  fortress.  I  managed  to 
secure  an  introduction  to  the  chief  prison  guard,  who 
being  able  to  speak  a  little  German  readily  answered  such 
inquiries  as  I  addressed  to  him,  and  also,  after  much  per- 
suasion and  the  gift  of  several  roubles,  finally  gave  me 
permission  to  go  inside  the  prisons.  This  privilege  was 
much  more  than  I  had  expected,  but  I  soon  learned  from 
experience  that  a  few  roubles,  judicously  used,  could  be 
made  a  magical  sesame  that  would  open  any  door  in 
Russia. 

The  buildings  are  of  brick  with  small,  square  win- 
dows, provided  with  double  glass  to  keep  out  the  cold. 
As  I  entered,  two  guards  stepped  forward  with  fixed  bay- 
onets and  followed  me  wherever  I  went  in  the  prison. 
The  chief  officer  also  accompanied  me,  and  from  him  I 
learned  that  Tobolsk  was  formerly  the  station  to  which 
all  hard -labor  convicts  were  sent,  but  as  mines  became 
developed  further  east  the  prisons  here  are  now  used  to' 
confine  convicts  one  year  before  sending  them  eastward  ; 
it  is  only  a  comparatively  small  number  who  are  de- 
tained at  Tobolsk  at  all,  those  in  confinement  being  crim- 
inals who  have  committed  some  new  offense  while  on  the 
transport  route,  or  convicts  who  have  been  retaken  after 
an  attempt  to  escape. 

Large  workshops  adjoined  the  prisons,  in  which  all 
those  able  to  labor  were  busily  employed  ;  there  were 
shoemakers,  tailors,  wagon-makers,  cabinet-makers,  etc. 
All  these  were  compelled  to  perform  a  certain  amount  of 
labor  each  day  or  be  knouted,  which  is  no  more  than  a 
playful  frolic  between  the  floggerand  his  victim — accord- 
ing to  Mr.  Lansdell,  the  philanthropist.  This  method  of 
punishment,  though  ostensibly  abolished,  is  inflicted  on 
some  poor  convict  at  the  Tobolsk  prisons  every  day,  as 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


281 


several  citizens  assured  me.     A  gentleman  who  had  wit- 
nessed several  such  floggings,  described  the  process   as 


ADMINISTERING    THE    KNOUT. 


follows :  The  culprit  is  taken  to  a  room  where  there  is 
a  large  pillar,  to  which  two  rings  are  attached  at  an  ele- 


282  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

vation  of  about  seven  feet  from  the  floor.  Here  he  is 
stripped  entirely,  but  ti  light  cloth  is  placed  about  his 
loins,  not  as  an  act  of  clemency,  however,  but  of  de- 
cency;  the  poor  victim,  now  panting  and  quivering  at 
the  ordeal  which  he  anticipates,  is  then  bound  about  the 
wrists  with  strong  cords  which  are  drawn  up  and  fastened 
to  the  rings,  raising  him  almost  off  his  feet.  Two  pro- 
fessional floggers  now  enter  the  room  in  response  to  a 
summons,  bearing  knouts  in  their  hands.  These  instru- 
ments of  torture,  rather  than  punishment,  are  composed 
of  several  rawhide  thongs  bound  together  at  one  end  in  a 
handle  one  foot  long ;  each  thong  terminates  in  a  knot, 
which  serves  the  purpose  of  giving  additional  force  to 
each  stroke  and  of  greatly  increasing  the  punishment  by 
bruising  the  flesh  where  each  knot  strikes.  The  floggers 
begin  their  work  generally  by  flourishing  the  knout  sev- 
eral times  about  their  heads  without  striking  the  victim, 
so  as  to  take  him  by  surprise,  as  it  is  believed  a  keener 
agony  is  produced  by  striking  when  the  victim  is  least 
expecting  it.  When  the  whipping  begins,  ho\\7ever,  it  is 
laid  on  by  the  floggers  alternately,  who  strike  all  over  the 
body,  so  as  to  produce  the  largest  surface  of  suffering. 
With  every  stroke  either  several  great  blue  welts  rise  un- 
der the  thongs,  or,  if  the  flesh  be  particularly  tender, 
gashes  are  made  from  whence  streams  of  blood  pour. 
But  it  is  said  there  is  less  suffering  from  cuts  than 
bruises,  the  former  healing  up  rapidly,  while  the  latter 
not  infrequently  fester  and  cause  an  illness  from  which 
many  die.  There  are  hundreds  of  instances,  however, 
where  men  and  women  have  died  under  the  administra- 
tion, and  in  nearly  all  cases  where  as  many  as  one  hun- 
dred lashes  are  given,  the  victim  becomes  unconscious 
and  does  not  revive  for  hours  afterward. 

Among  the  workmen  I  noticed   not  a  few  who  wore 


EXILE  I, IFF.   IN  SIBERIA. 


283 


chains  similar  to  those  I  saw  on  the  prisoners  at  Moscow. 
Upon  inquiry  respecting  the  cause  of  this,  an  intelligent 
guard  told  me,  through  my  interpreter,  that  the  prison- 
ers thus  subjected  to  additional  punishment  were  crimi- 
nals who  had  been  convicted  of  aggravated  offenses,  such 
as  unprovoked  murder  or  serious  political  crimes,  and 
that  the  sentence  they  were  under  was  hard  labor  for  a 
long  period  of  years  (or  for  life)  and  without  mercy. 

Through  curiosity  I  approached 
very  near  a  half-dozen  or  more 
of  these  shackled  convicts,  so 
that  the  effects  of  their  chains 
were  plainly  visible ;  in  some 
instances  large  abrasions  were 
noticed  on  their  wrists,  which 
must  have  given  extreme  pain, 
while  in  others  the  flesh  under 
the  galling  irons  was  so  black 
as  to  give  an  appearance  of 
mortification.  I  could  not 
discover  what  effect  the  heavy 
anklets  had,  as  large,  extreme- 
ly coarse  socks  hid  the  flesh, 
but  from  outward  indications  I  should  judge  the 
ankles  were  badly  swollen.  When  at  work,  the  wrists  of 
these  convicts  were  bound  with  a  chain  which  gave 
about  two  feet  of  free  action  to  the  hands,  but  when  not 
at  labor  the  wrists  were  brought  together  and  fastened  ; 
in  addition  to  this,  a  strong  leathern  strap  was  attached 
from  the  wrist  bindings  to  double  chains  on  the  legs  and 
ankles,  so  that  the  hands  were  confined  in  one  position  ; 
hard  labor  was  far  more  preferable  than  idleness,  when 
bound  in  such  heartless  manner. 

Women  convicts  were  subjected  to  as  severe  treatment 


A  CONVICT  LABORER  IN  IRONS. 


1'  -  -4  KCSSIAX  NIHILISM  AND 


as  the  men,  except  their  labor  was  hardly  so  taxing. 
They  were  chiefly  employed  scouring  the  prisons,  cook- 
ing, and  washing  clothes,  hut  I  noticed  a  few  who  were 
engaged  in  making  baskets  and  polishing  leather.  Their 
sex  did  not  exempt  them  from  the  knout  or  plele.  This 
latter  instrument  of  punishment  is  made  of  several  short 
but  thick  birches  tied  together  atjone  end,  the  others  be- 
ing left  loose  so  as  to  strike  in  several  places  on  the  flesh 
at  each  blow. 

Having  passed  through  the  prisons,  I  had  now  seen 
quite  enough  of  Tobolsk,  and  made  my  preparations  to 
leave  for  Tomsk.  Capt.  Spicer  had  already  left  me  the 
day  after  our  arrival  in  Tobolsk,  taking  steamer  for 
some  destination  on  the  Obi,  which  he  himself  had  not 
finally  decided  upon.  The  guide  whom  we  had  employed 
at  Moscow  also  accompanied  him,  to  my  great  satisfac- 
tion, for  I  had  long  since  learned  that,  besides  knowing 
but  little  of  the  Russian  language,  he  was  incontinently 
stupid,  and  his  services  were  by  no  means  satisfying. 
Capt.  Spicer,  however,  was  an  old  Arctic  whaler,  and 
was  now  going  among  the  Esquimaux,  whose  tongue  he 
could  speak  ;  he  was  therefore  content  to  take  the  guide 
with  him  as  a  servant. 

I  had  no  difficulty  in  securing  another  interpreter  in 
the  person  of  a  German  named  Sehieuter,  who  was  a  res- 
ident of  Tobolsk,  speaking  the  Bii£«,  Tartar,  Samoyede, 
Giiyak,  and  other  languages  m*d  by  the  various  tribes  of 
north  and  eastern  Siberia  ;  be  had  also  made  several  trips 
the  continent,  and  was  well  versed  in  all  the  ehar- 
of  both  country  and  people.  This  engage- 
a  particularly  fortunate  one,  for  through 
Sebleoter  I  obtained  much  information  which,  without 
his  services,  most  have  remained  undisclosed  to  me. 

My  experience  with  the  taraatass  and  the  tumbril, 


28(>  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXH 

I  must  confess,  greatly  prejudiced  me,  against  them  as 
modes  of  conveyance,  and  as  there  was  a  tri-weekly  ser- 
vice of  paddle-wheel  steamers  between  Tobolsk  and 
Tomsk,  I  decided  to  travel  to  the  latter  city  by  boat. 
Accordingly,  in  obedience  to  my  instructions,  Schleuter 
purchased  such  things  as  we  might  need  on  the  trip,  and 
on  Wednesday  afternoon  we  embarked  for  a  six  days' 
voyage  to  Tomsk.  As  we  backed  out  into  the  stream— 
the  Irtysh  River — a  beautiful  view  of  Tobolsk  was  had, 
reminding  me  of  the  appearance  1  had  conceived  of  mid- 
dle'century  castles  inhabited  by  the  lords  of  rich  manors, 
with  hundreds  of  outbuildings  for  the  shelter  of  their 
subjects.  This  creation  was  intensified  by  a  recollection 
of  the  country  in  which  I  was  now  traveling,  and  by 
the  peculiar  features  and  faces  that  surrounded  me. 

There  were  perhaps  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  pas- 
sengers on  the  steamer,  but  of  this  number  not  more 
than  twenty  occupied  first-class  accommodations.  My 
interpreter  was  quite  willing  to  travel  second-class  (the 
fare  being  fourteen  roubles),  but  I  preferred  that  he 
should  go  first-class  so  that  I  might  have  the  benefit  of 
his  company  constantly,  particularly  as  the  first-class  fare 
was  only  twenty  roubles  ($10.00).  But  this  passage 
money  did  not  include  table  fare,  which  amounted  to 
about  $1.25  each  per  day. 

I  have  seen  no  little  gambling  in  my  life,  but  never 
before  did  I  make  a  journey  on  a  steamer  where  all  the 
passengers  were  gamblers.  As  all  Russia  is  a  tea  drink- 
ing nation,  so  are  all  Russian  subjects  inveterate  card 
players.  In  fact  the  national  laws  foster  gaming,  for 
the  Government  has  a  monopoly  of  card  manufacturing, 
the  revenue  from  which  is  applied  to  the  support  of  the 
foundling  asylums  at  Moscow  and  St.  Petersburg. 

JSight  and  day  all  the  passengers,   men  and  women , 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  287 

were  busily  engaged  throwing  cards  in  a  game  I  never 
saw  played  before,  but  which  resembled  "Napoleon," 
a  game  quite  common  in  England,  in  which  the  players 
lay  wagers  on  how  many  tricks  they  can  take. 

But  except  at  night,  when  I  backed  Schleuter  in  a 
game,  I  was  too  much  interested  in  the  scenery  to  take 
any  interest  in  cards.  After  we  passed  out  of  the  Irtysh 
into  the  Obi  river  our  steamer  made  more  frequent  land- 
ings and  an  opportunity  was  had  to  learn  something  of 
Northern  Siberia.  At  the  towns  of  Shapsink,  Sahabinsk, 
Sol  kin  and  Surgat  we  met  hundreds  of  Ostjaks,  who 
are  a  race  of  people  inhabiting  the  northern  portion  of 
the  Tobolsk  and  Tomsk  Governments.  They  live  by 
fishing  and  hunting,  chiefly  by  the  former,  and  are  as 
filthy  in  their  person  as  the  Digger  Indians  of  New  Mexico. 
They  swarmed  about  our  boat  wherever  we  landed  and 
besought  the  passengers  to  buy  their  fish  and  game  ;  ducks 
they  sold  at  ten  kopecks  (five  cents)  a  brace ;  grouse  at 
fifty  kopecks  (twenty-five  cents)  a  pair  ;  while  fish  were 
so  cheap  that  an  American  would  not  receive  them  as 
a  gift  and  peddle  them  at  a  Negro  barbecue  at  such 
prices  ;  sturgeons,  which  is  perhaps  the  best  fish  found 
in  Siberian  waters,  were  offered  at  t\vo  kopecks  (one 
cent)  per  pound,  or  a  fish  weighing  ten  pounds  might 
have  been  purchased,  by  a  little  higgling,  for  about  sevea 
cents.  Many  other  species  of  fish  were  offered  at  one- 
half  cent  per  pound. 

These  Ostjaks  take  all  their  fish  from  the  upper  streams 
in  winter  time,  their  mode  of  fishing  being  as  follows: 
A  hole  is  cut  through  the  ice,  over  which  a  spring  rod  is 
placed,  having  several  lines  and  baited  hooks.  Little 
balls  of  clay  are  heated  and  thrown  into  the  stream,  which 
cause  the  fish  to  rise  from  hollow  beds  in  the  river,  where 
they  collect  in  schools.  When  the  fish  move  out  of  their 


288 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


places  they  invariably  swim  some  distance  up  stream  at 
which  time  they  see  the  bait  and  take  it  with  great  vora- 


RUSSIANIZED  OSTJAKS. 

ciousness.     Sometimes  a  dozen  lines  set  in  this  way  will 
take  as  many  as  a  dozen  fish  at  one  time.     After  the  fish 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  289 

are  caught  they  are  packed  and  frozen,  in  which  condi- 
tion they  are  sent  to  all  parts  of  Russia,  or  sold  at  inns 
and  to  passengers  along  the  steam  or  post-routes. 

The  Ostjaks,  who  number  about  30,000,  inhabit  that 
portion  of  Siberia  lying  between  the  rivers  Irtysh  and 
Obi,  and  as  far  north  as  Obdorsk.  They  are  nomadic 
and  live  in  a  diffused  state  in  tents  which  they  call 
youts. 

The  Obi  is  a  stream  of  considerable  width,  and  its 
course  lies  through  a  plain  without  even  once  passing  a 
moderate  sized  hill.  The  scenery  is  therefore  very  mo- 
notonous, and  but  for  the  peculiar  people  met  with  there 
would  be  nothing  on  the  water-route  between  Tobolsk 
and  Tomsk — 1,600  miles — to  excite  the  least  interest. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

WE  arrived  at  Tomsk  late  Tuesday  night,  and  so  anx- 
ious was  I  to  leave  the  steamer,  which  had  been  little 
more  than  a  prison  to  me,  that  I  called  to  Schleuter  and 
had  him  prepare  for  immediate  debarkation.  We  en- 
gaged a  droshky  and  drove  to  a  hotel,  the  Russian  name 
of  which  I  have  forgotten,  but  in  English  it  was  the 
Tomsk  Tavern,  so  my  interpreter  told  me,  kept  by  a 
pleasing  old  fellow  whose  patronymic  —  Honkhominiski 
— I  could  not  well  forget,  because  it  is  so  suggestive  of 
hog  and  hominy. 

I  was  shown  to  a  room  in  the  hotel,  the  furniture  of 
which  was  principally  icons  and  candles.  I  might  call 
them  images,  but  not  in  the  presence  of  a  Russian,  unless 
I  wanted  to  insult  him  ;  an  icon,  therefore,  needs  some 
explanation.  The  religious  Muscovite  i*  technical  to  a, 


290  BUSS1AN  NIHILISM  AND 

point  of  punctilliousness  ;  he  observes  that  biblical  in- 
junction which  forbids  the  making  of  idols  or  .images  for 
worship  ;  but  his  construction  of  the  divine  command  is, 
to  say  the  least,  about  as  badly  mixed  as  was  the  Irish- 
man who  attended  the  accouchment  of  a  double-headed 
calf.  A  farmer  coming  by  noticed  Pat  at  work  with  the 
calf,  which  he  quickly  observed  was  a  freak  of  nature, 
and  addressed  him  :  "  Well,  Pat,  that  is  rather  a  singu- 
lar lusus  naturae,  the  like  of  which  I  never  before  wit- 
nessed." 

"Begorrah,"  responded  the  puzzled  Hibernian,  "  that's 
a  noble  name  for  sich  a  brhute  ;  I  was  afther  callin'  ov  it 
a  badly  mixed  calf." 

In  order  to  avoid  conflict  with  the  command,  and  at 
the  same  time  secure  his  image,  the  Russian  icon  maker 
first  paints  a  picture  of  either  Christ,  the  Madonna,  or 
whatever  holy  patriarch  he  desires  to  represent,  and  then 
makes  a  bas-relief  investiture,  so  that  the  clothing  is  a 
relief  image,  while  those  portions  which  represent  the  face, 
hands  or  feet  are  only  painted  on  a  flat  back-ground. 
This  hybrid  image  the  Russians  call  an  icon,  and  they 
believe  with  all  their  devout  credulity  that  it  is  neither  a 
graven  image  nor  the  representation  of  an  image.  It  is 
only  necessary  to  add  that  Russian  religion  is  founded 
upon  faith  alone — without  works. 

Surrounded  by  so  much  holiness,  I  slept  with  sound- 
ness until  Peter's  cock  split  its  throat  crowing,  and  the 
sun  had  started  the  bees  on  their  third  trip  to  the  clover 
blossoms — metaphorically,  of  course,  as  there  is  no  clover 
in  Siberia.  Starting  out  into  the  city  about  ten  o'clock, 
the  first  thing  that  arrested  my  attention  was  what  Rus- 
sians call  a  gostinnoi  dvor,  a  market-place  where  are  sold 
all  the  vegetable  products  of  Siberia,  and  many  others 
raised  in  Russia.  I  was  very  much  entertained  passing 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


291 


through  the  numerous  stalls  making  a  hurried  inspection 
of  the  things  on  sale,  and  those  who  were  bartering. 
Around  the  market  there  is  a  large  open  space  in  the  cen- 
ter of  which  stands  a  handsome  little  chapel  with  white 

and  gilt  sides  and 
a  beautiful  blue 
dome  representing 
the  starlit  canopy 
of  heaven. 

There  are  two 
prisons  in  Tomsk, 
both  of  which  are 
low,  brick  build- 
ings, perpetually 
damp  and  foul  with 
miasmatic  exhala- 
tions, owing  to  the 
boggy  character  of 
the  soil  over  which 
they  are  built. 
One  of  these  pris- 
ons is  used  as  a  de- 
tention building, 
in  which  prisoners 
on  the  way  east 
a  r  e  temporarily 
confined,  from  one 
day  to  one  week, 
according  as  occa- 
sion may  require. 
In  the  other  prison,  criminals  sent  into  exile  for  short 
terms  are  confined.  These  perform  little  labor,  and  they 
are  kept  in  such  close  quarters  that  inaction  affects  them 
seriously..  Through  the  kindness  of  a  local  charity,  a 


292  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

school  has  recently  been  established  for  the  benefit  of 
the  prisoners  and  their  children,  but  comparatively  few 
avail  themselves  of  the  benefit  which  it  affords.  There 
is  a  reason  for  this  which  I  did  not  understand  at  first. 
The  prisoners  confined  at  Tomsk  are  only  those  con- 
victed of  petty  crimes,  whose  sentence  does  not  exceed 
four  }rears,  and  even  this  does  not  extend  beyond  mere 
confinement ;  naturally,  such  convicts  are  from  a  class  so 
densely  ignorant  that  intelligence  is  repugnant ;  they 
never  have  spirit  to  do  more  than  snatch  a  pocket-book, 
assassinate  some  unsuspecting  person,  or  assault  a  female. 

There  are  no  political  convicts  at  Tomsk,  and  as  it  was 
this  class  I  was  more  particularly  desirous  of  seeing,  my 
stay  in  that  town  was  limited  to  a  single  day. 

We  were  now  at  the  terminus  of  water  communication 
eastward,  of  which  fact  I  was  not  disposed  to  grumble, 
because  steamboating  in  Siberia  can  only  be  compared  for 
discomfort,  to  travelling  by  tarantass  or  tumbril ;  when 
you  are  on  one,  you  invariably  wish  you  were  on  the 
other  ;  so,  having  just  left  a  steamer,  I  was  glad  to  get  a 
tumbril.  Schleuter  had  no  difficulty  in  engaging  a  ve- 
hicle of  this  character,  and  being  himself  familiar  with 
the  highway,  we  concluded  to  dispense  with  the  services 
of  a  yemstchik  (driver)  and  go  through  to  Krasnoiarsk, 
which  is  distant  from  Tomsk  about  three  hundred  miles, 
without  any  auxiliaries.  Having  completed  arrange- 
ments, we  started  from  Tomsk  in  the  morning  with  a  de- 
termination to  reach  Krasnoiarsk  within  two  clays'  travel- 
ling. Schleuter  was  a  good  driver,  and  he  knew  just 
how  much  speed  to  get  out  of  three  Siberian  ponies 
abreast.  When  we  reined  up  at  the  first  station,  our 
horses  were  in  a  foam  but  they  still  had  many  long 
breaths  in  them  ;  nevertheless  we  changed  them,  and  with 
fresh  animals  our  rapid  travelling  was  resumed. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


293 


294  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

As  a  pointer  to  those  ambitious  of  visiting  Siberia,  let 
me  add  one  explanatory  word  here.  First,  a  tumbril  is 
much  to  be  preferred  before  a  tarantass  ;  second,  horse- 
back is  preferable  to  either ;  third,  walking,  in  any  other 
country,  is  far  less  objectionable  than  travelling  in  any 
way  through  Siberia.  It  is  true,  that  in  a  tumbril  lying 
down  is  possible,  but  consider  the  luxury  of  such  a  bed  ; 
between  the  two  axles  are  three  or  more  poles  to  which 
the  bed  of  the  vehicle  is  fastened  ;  they  are  just  long  and 
inelastic  enough  to  throw  you  high  in  the  air  when  the 
tumbril  crosses  an  obstruction,  agd  let  you  down  again 
with  the  force  of  a  catapult.  Under  such  circumstances 
sleep  visits  the  traveller  in  horrid  dreams  ;  this  I  know 
from  experience,  for  the  first  night  out,  being  exhausted 
with  the  mascerating  trituration  to  which  J  had  been 
subjected  for  eighteen  hours,  I  fell  into  a  doze  which 
lasted  perhaps  half  an  hour,  during  which  time  I  dreamed 
of  being  assaulted  by  six  three-headed  giants  two  miles 
tall,  who  pounded  me  with  spiked  bludgeons  and  then 
chewed  me  up  between  steel  teeth  six  feet  long.  When 
the  giants  concluded  their  feast,  my  dream  changed  and 
I  thought  a  large  pack  of  wolves  had  surrounded  a  small 
tree  up  which  I  had  sought  escape  ;  that  they  fell  to  with 
their  teeth  and  soon  gnawed  the  sapling  until  it  fell, 
throwing  me  upon  the  ground  with  extreme  violence, 
when  immediately  my  flesh  was  torn  into  shoe-strings  by 
a  thousand  snarling,  voracious  pests  of  Siberia's  plains. 
The  cold  chills  even  now  creep  in  successive  waves  over 
my  body  as  I  recall  that  dream,  for  it  seems  that  I  can 
still  feel  the  wolves  planting  their  feet  on  my  body  while 
stripping  the  flesh  from  my  bones.  This  dream  is  only 
a  very  slight  exaggeration  of  the  real  miseries  suffered 
by  travellers  in  Siberia. 

When  Schleuter  became  too  tired  for  further  service  I 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  295 

took  his  place  as  driver,  and  thus  we  lost  no  time  until 
the  evening  following  our  departure  from  Tomsk,  when, 
strange  enough,  we  overtook  the  same  convoy  of  prison- 
ers I  had  seen  leave  Tobolsk,  on  foot,  nearly  a  week  be- 
fore. This  I  considered  a  piece  of  good  fortune,  as  it 
enabled  me  to  see  how  exiles  in  transport  were  treated, 
and  to  discover  with  what  feelings  they  accepted  banish- 
ment. 

I  got  on  good  terms  with  the  chief  officer  of  the  con- 
voy by  giving  him  sundry  privileges  with  a  little  flask 
which  I  carried  for  emergencies,  just  like  the  one  to  which 
it  was  now  applied.  Through  my  interpreter  I  talked 
with  him  familiarly  for  some  time  and  then  made  inqui- 
ries respecting  his  charge;  he  was  not  disposed  to  say 
much  about  the  prisoners  at  first,  but  as  the  flask  lost  its 
contents,  he  became  more  loquacious  until  I  had  pumped 
enough  out  of  him  to  fill  a  book.  Under  the  spirit- 
ual influence  which  now  possessed  him,  he  exhibited 
that  careless  indifference  of  his  prisoners'  comfort  which 
distinguishes  the  Russian  aristocracy  in  their  treatment  of 
the  poor  peasantry. 

Tt  was  plain  to  be  seen  that  the  burdened  convicts 
were  suffering  from  fatigue,  although  it  is  said  they 
travel  only  on  alternate  days,  resting  at  post-stations  and 
attending  church  meantime,  but  of  this  I  have  my 
doubts.  It  is  probably  the  law,  but  what  is  a  written  law 
in  a  country  like  Siberia  ?  My  impression  is,  if  the  officers 
of  a  convoy  desire  to  recreate  themselves — get  drunk  on 
the  highway — they  stop  one  or  more  days  at  a  time  ;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  if  they  are  anxious  to  make  a  quick 
trip  in  order  to  serve  their  own  personal  ends,  then  the 
convicts  are  compelled  to  continue  their  march,  regardless 
of  the  fatigue  they  may  be  suffering.  In  fact,  the  officer 
with  whom  I  was  conversing  virtually  admitted  to  me  as 
much. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  297 

There  were  three  ambulances — tumbrils — with  the  con- 
voy to  carry  those  who  could  travel  no  longer,  but  the  officer 
told  me  they  were  used  only  in  extreme  cases  ;  said  he, 
"when  a  man  or  woman  lags  behind  we  sometimes  touch 
them  up  with  a  cracker ;  and  if  this  does  not  put  new 
life  in  their  legs  the  plete,  well  wielded,  almost  invariably 
does."  This  admission  served  to  indicate  the  severe 
measures  sometimes  used  in  compelling  exiles  to  walk 
when  their  condition  was  such  that  they  could  scarcely 
support  their  exhausted  bodies.  I  am  not  unconscious 
of  the  fact  that  many  would  feign  sickness  in  order  to 
secure  a  ride,  but  for  the  stringent  measures  used  by  the 
guards ;  human  nature  is  not  different  in  Siberia  from 
that  we  see  in  other  countries,  but  the  enforced  travelling 
of  exiles  is  performed  under  circumstances  peculiar,  in 
that  the  convicts  are  punished  beyond  what  their  sentence 
contemplates. 

As  I  rode  beside  the  officer  my  attention  was  at- 
tracted to  one  man  who  staggered  along,  with  his  face 
towards  the  ground  as  if  trying  to  lose  consciousness  in  a 
hypnotism  of  himself.  He  was  heavily  ironed,  in  fact 
inhumanly,  atrociously  shackled,  so  that  every  step  he 
took  his  chains  rattled  in  consonance  with  the  extreme 
suffering  which  I  could  plainly  see  he  was  enduring.  His 
wrists  were  bound  together,  to  which  was  attached  a 
heavier  double-chain  that  ran  down  and  connected  with 
immense  iron  manacles  on  his  ankles  ;  the  weight  of  the 
gyves  he  had  to  carry  was  not  less  than  thirty  pounds, 
and  though  not  at  the  time  able  to  observe  the  effects,  I 
was  quite  certain  that  an  examination  would  disclose  a 
sight  sufficient  to  excite  the  sympathy  of  any  human  be- 
ing. I  was  therefore  determined  in  my  efforts  to  see  the 
poor  fellow  and  learn  exactly  the  condition  of  his  limbs. 
To  accomplish  this  I  had  recourse  to  a  little  stratagem, 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXI) 

in  which  Schleuter  gave  me  such  assistance  as  made  my 
plan  successful.  I  knew  that  the  next  station  was  the 
last  before  reaching  Krasnoyarsk,  so  directly  after  refilling 
my  flask  I  went  among  the  several  officers  of  the  guard 
and  gave  them  each  so  much  as  they  desired  to  drink, 
besides  a  few  pleasant  words,  such  as  I  thought  would 
place  them  on  good  terms  with  me.  I  next  returned 
to  the  chief  officer  and  give  him  a  full  flask,  after  which 
I  began  a  dissertation  on  prisoners  generally,  and  on 
exiles  in  particular  ;  declaring  that  as  a  rule  their  treat- 
ment was  altogether  too  considerate ;  that  they  should 
be  dealt  with  in  a  manner  becoming  their  crimes  ;  if  a 
man  commits  murder  he  should  be  shown  no  more  mercy 
than  that  which  he  manifested  for  his  victim  ;  I  assured 
him  that  the  plete  was  a  good  stimulant  and  was  quite 
certain  that  the  irons  on  his  prisoners  were  in  no  wise  too 
heavy ;  in  fact  they  might  be  more  wholesome  if  they 
were  a  little  heavier.  A  long  commentary  of  this  charac- 
ter had  the  effect  I  had  anticipated,  for  the  officer  not 
only  coincided  with  my  views,  but  offered  to  prove  that 
he  was  a  disciplinarian  after  the  type  I  had  pictured. 
"  Some  of  these  fellows,"  said  he,  "are  wretches  who 
ought  to  be  fed  to  a  slow  fire  ;  well,  I  have  the  satisfac- 
tion of  knowing  that  they  will  remember  me ." 

To  this  I  made  a  complimentary  reply,  and  then  begged 
that  he  would  accord  me  the  privilege  of  examining  one 
or  more  of  the  convicts  at  the  next  station — those  whom 
he  could  recommend  as  having  had  something  of  their 
deserts  while  under  his  charge. 

I  was  very  glad  at  receiving  a  favorable  response,  so 
at  a  station  between  Balshe  and  Krasnoiarsk  we  stopped 
an  hour,  during  which  time  I  examined  the  poor  fellow 
to  whom  I  have  referred,  and  also  one  woman  who  was 
travelling  with  a  large  iron  collar  about  her  neck,  to 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


299 


which  there  were  chains  passing  down  and  binding  her 
wrists.  The  two  were  taken  into  a  private  room  of  the 
station,  separately  so  as  not  to  arouse  the  suspicion  of 
the  other  convicts  or  guards. 


A  SHACKLED  CONVICT  ON  THE  TRANSPORT  ROUTE. 

The  shackles  being  removed  we  took  off  the  man's 
felt  boots,  when  I  saw  a  sight  which  may  God  forbid  I 
should  ever  again  witness.  There  is  nothing  to  which 


300  fcUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

I  might  compare  his  condition  except  to  some  of  those 
tortured  by  the  Spanish  Inquisition,  or  to  victims  of 
Bulgarian  atrocity.  The  flesh  had  been  bruised  by  the 
cruel  shackles,  and  then  swelling  had  caused  the  irons  to 
slowly  lacerate  the  sensitive  parts  until  the  ankles  re- 
sembled the  last  stages  of  leprosy,  when  the  flesh  grows 
black  and  begins  to  drop  away  from  the  bones.  Such  a 
sight  I  never  before  saw  and  hope  never  to  see  again,  but 
in  addition  to  the  suffering  which  this  dreadful  treatment 
caused  him,  his  wrists  were  in  a  condition  almost  equally 
bad.  His  felt  boots  had,  of  course,  somewhat  aggra- 
vated the  injuries  to  his  ankles,  which  were  now  worn 
almost  in  two  by  the  shackles ;  but  there  was  the 
same  rasping  pressure  on  his  wrists  on  which  he  bore 
nearly  all  the  weight  of  his  chains  in  order  to  relieve  his 
ankles.  Such  compassion  was  aroused  in  me  by  his  suf- 
ferings that  tears  fell  fast  from  my  eyes,  and  in  a  mo- 
ment when  the  officer  was  not  looking  I  slipped  a  ten 
rouble  note  into  the  poor  fellow's  pocket.  I  was  well 
aware  that  this  sum  of  money  would  purchase  for  him 
many  little  comforts  and  also  secure  him  a  place  in  the 
ambulance.  The  look  of  "God  bless  you"  which  he 
gave  was  so  full  of  soulfulness  and  gratitude  that  in  re- 
membering the  event  since  I  have  wished  a  thousand 
times  that  I  had  made  my  gratuity  tenfold  greater.  But 
in  addition  to  my  gift  I  procured  for  him  transportation 
in  the  convoy  trumbril  by  giving  the  chief  officer  five 
roubles. 

After  examining  the  man  and  sending  him  out  of  the 
room  the  woman  was  called  in,  but  though  her  condition 
was  dreadful  and  pitiable,  it  was  not  to  be  compared  with 
that  of  the  man's.  Her  wrists,  which  had  supported  but 
little  weight,  were  badly  chafed  and  had  bled  until  her 
dress  was  stained ;  but  the  greatest  suffering  she  en- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  301 

dured  was  from  her  neck,  which  was  so  badly  bruised  that 
when  the  iron  collar  was  removed  she  could  not  bear  the 
least  pressure  on  the  injured  parts  without  exhibiting 
great  pain.  By  giving  the  officer  another  five  rouble  note 
he  consented  to  permit  the  woman  to  travel  into  Krasnoy- 
arsk without  the  shackles. 

But  I  would  not  have  the  reader  suppose  that  these 
two  were  the  only  sufferers  in  that  party  of  prisoners, 
for  there  were,  perhaps,  three-score  of  men  and  women 
no  more  fortunate  ;  the  two  I  selected  to  examine  were 
not  exceptional  cases,  but  were  a  fair  sample  of  the  re- 
sults produced  by  wearing  galling  irons  while  travelling 
2000  miles  on  foot. 

Beside  these  miserable  convicts  trudged  nearly  one 
hundred  foot-sore  women  and  children  who  had  elected,  of 
their  own  volition,  to  accompany  their  husbands  or  fathers 
into  exile.  Among  the  women  not  a  few  carried  little 
infants  strapped  on  their  backs,  Indian  style,  as  their 
arms  could  never  have  borne  them  so  far,  however 
precious  a  child  is  to  its  mother.  I  distributed  several 
roubles  among  those  whose  appearance  of  misery  ap- 
pealed to  my  sympathy  most ;  but  these  little  gifts  served 
to  increase  the  pity  I  already  felt,  for  as  I  would  give  to 
one  and  not  to  another,  the  sorrowful  looks  I  saw  in  the 
eyes  of  those  whose  extended  palms  received  nothing 
pierced  rue  with  compassion. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

WE  arrived  at  Krasnoiarsk  on  the  evening  of  the  third 
day,  a  little  in  advance  of  the  convoy  of  prisoners,  and 
found  lodging  in  a  hotel  which  gave  us  fair  accommoda- 
tions. 


302 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


The  town  has  a  population  of  about  8,000,  and  is  situ- 
ated on  one  of  Siberia's  most  famous  rivers,  the  Yenisei, 
which,  starting  in  the  Taugnou  mountains  of  Chinese 
Tartary,  flows  northward  a  distance  of  2000  miles  into 
the  Yenisei  Gulf.  Krasnoiarsk  lies  upon  several  small 
hills,  and  is  built  in  an  irregular,  straggling  style.  It 
contains  one  prison  which  is  used,  I  understood,  for  con- 
fining local  offenders,  and  others  who,  while  enroute 
further  east,  fall  ill  by  the  way-side.  What  is  meant  by 
the  word  "ill,"  in  this  connection,  may  be  inferred 
when  the  fact  is  known  that  out  of  a  total  of  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-two 
prisoners  confined  in  the 
prison  when  I  visited  it, 
fifty-one  were  insane. 
I  am  not  surprised  that 
so  many  exiles  grow 
mad,  for  it  is  only  the 
coarsest  and  strongest 
minds  that  can  bear  up 
under  the  afflictions 
which  a  majority  of  ex- 
iles are  made  to  endure. 

In  passing  through 
the  prison  at  Krasnoi- 
arsk, I  went  into  one 
ward  that  contained  an 
unfortunate  fellow  who 
had  been  so  brutally  maltreated  while  on  the  transport 
route  that  his  life  was  despaired  of.  He  was  therefore 
left  at  the  prison,  where  his  treatment  being  less  rigor- 
ous he  had  so  far  improved  as  to  be  able  to  sit  up  and  move 
about.  But  the  most  remarkable  circumstance  concern- 
ing this  prisoner  was  found  in  the  fact,  that  when  he  en- 


A  CONVALESCF.NT  PRISONER  IN  IRONS. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  303 

tered  the  prison  he  was  in  chains  much  heavier  than  those 
I  have  previously  described,  and  these  had  never  been  re- 
moved. This  statement  is  so  startling  as  to  appear  incred- 
ible, but  receiving  the  admission  from  those  in  charge  of 
the  prisoner,  and  with  my  own  eyes  beholding  tho 
wretched  man  still  clothed  with  chains,  there  could  be 
no  stronger  proof  produced  to  establish  any  statement. 
As  I  saw  him  he  sat  on  a  clumsy  chair  to  which  he  was 
made  fast,  as  seen  in  the  engraving.  Around  his  waist 
was  an  iron  girdle  two  inches  broad  and  nearly  one-half 
inch  thick,  to  which  heavy  chains  were  attached  connect- 
ing with  an  iron  collar  about  his  neck,  and  with  an  im- 
mense bar  of  iron  over  his  feet.  This  iron  bar,  which 
must  have  weighed  not  less  than  twenty-five  pounds,  was 
made  fast  to  his  ankles  by  staples  in  the  bar,  which 
grasped  the  limbs  in  an  unyielding  embrace.  It  was 
truly  a  lamentable  sight,  from  which  I  turned  away  with- 
out investigating  the  condition  of  his  neck,  waist  or 
ankles,  for  I  was  certain  they  would  present  an  appear- 
ance not  unlike  that  I  have  already  described  as  having 
seen  at  a  post-station. 

There  are  not  a  few  buildings  in  Krasnoyarsk  of  excel- 
lent pretensions  both  as  to  size  and  architecture.  It  has 
one  church  that  cost  nearly  $500,000,  which  was  built  by 
a  rich  gold  miner  who  had  seen  much  of  the  world  even 
on  this  side  the  Atlantic,  and  yet  preferred  Siberia  as  a 
place  of  residence.  His  home,  however,  was  such  a 
model  of  luxury  and  elegance  that  his  preference  was  but 
natural. 

I  Avas  told  that  the  city  was  but  little  more  than  half 
as  large  as  it  was  prior  to  the  fire  of  1880,  which  swept 
away  many  of  its  most  important  buildings,  the  ruins  of 
which  were  still  to  be  seen  on  the  south  side  of  the  town, 
for  it  must  be  remembered  that  they  do  not  build  up 


T>04  UUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

burned  districts  in  Siberia,  or  even  in  any  part  of  Europe, 
like  they  do  in  America.  A  pleasing  incident  of  this  fact 
was  told  to  me  ut  St.  Petersburg.  Some  time  in  the  win- 
ter of  1881  the  Livadia  Garden  buildings  (a  summer 
retreat  in  the  suburbs  of  St.  Petersburg),  took  fire  and 
were  entirely  consumed.  The  buildings  consisted  of  open 
frame  works  under  which  there  were  seats  and  tables  for 
wine  and  tea  drinking  ;  also  an  enclosed  building  used  as 
a  saloon,  and  an  open  air  theater ;  the  whole  was  made  of 
light  pine  timber,  such  as  in  America  a  rushing  man  gen- 
erally gives  himself  one  week  to  have  built  up  from  the 
ground  and  in  full  operation.  But  the  Livadia;  Garden 
was  re-opened  three  months  after  the  tire,  the  buildings 
having  been,  replaced,  which  was  regarded  as  such  extra- 
ordinarily quick  work  that  the  place  has  since  been  known 
as  the  American  Garden.  The  St.  Petersburgers  declare 
that  no  where  in  the  world  outside  of  America  was  ever 
such  rapid  construction  of  buildings  known. 

In  the  afternoon  following  my  arrival  in  Krasnoiarsk 
the  convoy  which  I  accompanied  made  ready  for  cross- 
ing the  Yenisei  and  continuing  their  journey  tolrkoutsk, 
where,  upon  arrival,  convicts  are  distributed,  according 
to  their  sentences,  to  Sakhalein,  Yakoutsk,  Kara,  and 
other  penal  stations. 

The  Yenisei  is  nearly  one  mile  wide  at  Krasnoiarsk, 
across  which  prisoners  are  taken  by  what  is  called  a 
"flying  bridge."  This  bridge,  so  called,  consists  of  a 
series  of  boats  anchored  in  the  river,  over  which  passes  a 
long  line  connecting  with  the  main  shores  ;  a  barge  for 
carrying  the  convicts  is  made  fast  to  this  lino,  which, 
moving  by  pullies,  draws  the  boat  from  one  side  of  the 
stream  to  the  other.  This  rather  singular  arrangement 

O  .       £T 

for  ferriage  is  made  necessary  by  reason  of  the  extraor- 
dinary current  in  the  Yenisei,  which  often  reaches  a 
rapidity  of  fifteen  miles  per  hour,. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA 


305 


t: 


306  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

There  was  nothing  to  detain  me  long  at  Krasnoiarsk, 
and  being  desirous  of  visiting  some  mines  where  1  might 
witness  the  labor  of  convicts,  after  advising  with  Schleu- 
ter,  we  decided  to  proceed  two  hundred  miles  north- 
ward to  Yeniseisk,  As  this  would  take  us  off  the 
transport  route  we  had  to  purchase  all  provisions 
needed  on  the  trip,  and  also  a  complete  travelling 
outfit,  including  horses  and  tumbril.  This,  however,  did 
not  involve  so  great  an  outlay  as  the  reader  might  expect. 
Horses  in  Siberia  are  surprisingly  cheap,  as  are  cattle.  A 
fatted  calf,  one  year  old,  will  not  bring  more  than  $1.50, 
and  a  good  pony  may  be  had  for  from  $5  to  $8.  The 
outfit  of  three  horses,  harness  and  tumbril,  cost  me  only 
$48,  and  in  the  end  I  found  my  purchase  had  been  a 
most  profitable  one.  Milk  is  nearly  everywhere  abund- 
ant in  Siberia,  and  of  this  useful  article  we  purchased 
four  gallons ;  butter  is  not  so  plentiful,  but  yet  obtain- 
able at  from  six  to  eight  cents  per  pound  ;  we  also  took 
with  us  a  samovar — tea  urn — two  pounds  of  tea,  fifteen 
loaves  of  white  bread,  which  were  baked  to  our  order, 
and  twenty  pounds  of  fresh  meat.  For  our  horses  we 
provided  five  bushels  of  corn,  which  is  raised  in  Siberia 
and  sold  at  twenty-two  cents  per  bushel ;  grass  is  gen- 
erally abundant,  but  oats  are  almost  unknown.  We  laid 
in  no  other  provender  for  our  animals,  having  already 
such  a  load  that  we  could  scarcely  make  room  for  our 
bedding.  Thus  accoutred,  away  we  went  towards  the 
great  tundras,  which,  beginning  a  little  north  of  Yen- 
iseisk, stretch  away  to  the  arctic  shores  of  Siberia. 

Before  reaching  Krasnoiarsk  the  country  becomes 
more  broken,  with  a  considerable  showing  of  stunted 
trees,  chiefly  pine,  but  going  northward  from  that 
city  the  vegetation  rapidly  grows  more  profuse,  until 
soon  there  appears  an  unbroken  forest  in  which  large 


EXILi:  LIFi:  IX  SIBERIA. 


.307 


gar.ie  abounds.  Of  this  latter  fact  I  had  abundant  evi- 
dence during  the  first  night  we  went  into  camp.  There 
is  a  public  highway  between  Krasnoyarsk  and  Yeniseisk 
along  which  are  occasional  inns,  but  the  intervals  are  so 


SIBERIAN  ROADSIDE  INN. 


rare  that  we  concluded  to  make  camp  at  nine  o'clock 
rather  than  push  011  ten  miles  further,  where  we  might 
have  secured  lodgings  not  nearly  so  good  as  our  tumbril 
afforded.  Directly  after  lighting  our  camp-fire,  which 


308  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

was  made  within  a  few  yards  of  the  road-side,  beside  a 
large  log,  Schleuter  turned  to  me  suddenly,  with  the  re- 
mark :  « '  What  was  that  ?  ' ' 

I  had  heard  no  unusual  noise,  but  must  eonfess  that 
his  enquiry  immediately  put  me  in  a  condition  to  sec  or 
hear  anything  dreadful  upon  the  least  symptom  of  a  cause. 
I  had  with  me  no  arms  except  a  Smith  and  Wesson  for- 
ty-four calibre  revolver,  and  this  was  quickly  drawn  in 
anticipation  of  approaching  deadly  peril.  The  night  was 
cloudless,  so  that  objects  not  obscured  by  the  dense  growth 
could  be  readily  denned  at  a  distance  of  thirty  or  fort y 
yards.  We  therefore  looked  with  eyes  and  ears,  but  could 
discover  nothing,  though  our  horses  manifested  signs  of 
uneasiness.  After  several  minutes  of  suspense,  even 
Schleuter  came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  had  given  a 
false  alarm,  but  I  was  far  from  being  satisfied,  having 
received  a  nervous  shock  from  the  suddenness  of  his  ex- 
citing enquiry  which  I  could  not  rally  from. 

Under  no  circumstances  is  it  an  act  of  decorum  or  an 
evidence  of  great  courage  for  a  gentleman  to  parade  his 
cool  bravery  before  a  company  when  every  element  of 
danger  is  absent ;  particularly  inappropriate  would  it  be 
for  ine  to  strike  a  self-eulogistic  attitude  here  where  the 
opposite  side  has  no  opportunity  of  replying.  But  at 
the  sacrifice  of  modesty  I  must  say  that  on  my  native 
heath  I  have  hunted  such  game  as  the  country  afforded 
without  at  any  time — save  once — having  either  my  con- 
science or  fears  excited  ;  this  placid  condition  is  due, 
however,  to  the  fact  that  I  always  killed  what  I  was  hunt- 
ing, and  because  I  never  got  on  the  wrong  side  of  the 
fence.  But  the  conditions  were  now  very  materially  al- 
tered, for  what  I  knew  concerning  Siberian  game  had 
been  acquired  by  reading  adventures  which  described  the 
animals  as  great  hunters  themselves  and  of  the  carnivorous 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  SO  9 

Species.  What  I  had  forgotten  of  the  ferocious  wolves, 
hears,  boars,  etc.,  of  which  I  had  read,  came  back  to  me 
now  in  vivid  panorama,  so  that  an  admission  of  my  rest- 
lessness is  drawing  it  exceedingly  mild. 

I  sat  up  rather  late,  smoking  my  pipe,  but  the  drowsy 
god  at  length  alighted  on  my  eye-lids  and  I  turned  in 
with  Schleuter,  who  had  for  an  hour  before  been  executing 
a  nasal  refrain  in  the  tumbril.  One,  perhaps  two  hours 
had  passed  ;  the  fire  was  almost  extinguished,  and  doz- 
ing, I  had  lost  my  fear  in  a  pleasant  dream  of  home. 
The  dream  was  concluded  abruptly  by  my  being  awak- 
ened with  a  returning  sense  of  danger ;  the  horses  were 
snorting  and  tugging  violently  to  loose  themselves.  I 
jumped  up,  and  looking  over  toward  the  smouldering 
embers  saw  a  bear,  which,  in  my  dreadfully  excited  state, 
appeared  as  large  as  a  mammoth.  I  forgot  to  awaken 
Schleuter,  who  obstinately  slept  without  one  disturbing 
reflection,  but  reaching  for  my  pistol  I  fired  across  and 
very  near  Schleuter' s  head  just  as  the  bear  reared  up  on 
his  hind  legs  to  drain  our  samovar,  which  had  been  left  on 
the  log.  If  I  had  known  a  little  pistol  shot  could  have 
created  so  much  of  a  row  I  would  have  considered  sev- 
eral minutes  before  firing.  Schleuter  bounded  up  as 
though  a  dynamite  mine  had  exploded  under  him,  and  he 
lit  out  of  the- tumbril  like  one  possessed  of  the  devil.  So 
dreadfully'  confounded  was  I  by  his  actions  that  for  a 
moment  I  forgot  all  about  the  bear,  notwithstanding  that 
it  was  howling  with  rage  and  advancing  on  Schleuter. 
My  aim  had  not  been  bad,  for  the  bear's  foreleg  was 
broken  by  the  shot,  but  this  served  to  rouse  all  the  fight 
in  bruin's  nature.  Schleuter,  half  awake,  could  not  see 
the  bear  nor  be  made  to  understand  his  dangerous  posi- 
tion, until  another  shot  from  my  pistol,  placed  almost 
against  the  animal's  ear,  put  a  coup  de  grace  on  our  ad- 
venture. 

20 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

There  was  no  more  sleep  for  either  of  us  that  night,  so 
rebuilding  our  fire  we  fell  to  and  skinned  the  dead  bear, 
keeping  the  hide  as  a  trophy  and  taking  the  carcass  along 
with  us  to  Yeniseisk.  I  learned  from  natives  that  what 
I  considered  a  great  adventure,  in  killing  a  bear,  was  an 
event  so  commonplace  that  it  could  scarcely  be  esteemed 
an  adventure.  In  fact  the  country  I  was  now  in  abounded 
with  such  game,  the  hunting  of  which  was  followed  not 
only  for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  game  but  for  rid- 
ding the  country  of  pests  which  ravaged  herds  of  young 
cattle  and  horses.  A  favorite  way  of  hunting  the  bear  is 
with  a  whip,  fire-arms  and  ammunition  not  always  being 
obtainable  in  Siberia.  To  be  successful  in  this  kind  of 
hunting  two  men  must  hunt  together  on  horses  ;  each 
provides  himself  with  a  whip,  made  of  plaited  rawhide, 
about  twelve  or  fifteen  feet  long,  to  the  end  of  which  is 
tied  a  leaden  ball,  which  gives  impetus  to  the  lash,. and 
also  serves  the  more  useful  purpose  of  tying  the  lash 
when  whipped  around  the  animal's  neck.  A  bear  being 
found  the  two  hunters,  whose  horses  are  generally  trained 
for  the  use,  ride  on  each  side  of  the  animal,  striking  it 
with  the  whip  until  it  is  almost  exhausted  ;  they  then,  by 
a  movement  which  requires  no  little  skill,  throw  their 
whips  around  the  bear's  neck  in  such  a  manner  that  the 
lash  ties  itself;  now  being  drawn  from  opposite  directions 
the  animal  is  powerless  and  is  of  ten  taken  into  the  village 
in  this  way,  where  it  is  disposed  of. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

WE  reached  Yeniseisk  without  further  adventure,  and 
found  it  a  city  of  much  greater  size  and  importance  than 
I  hud  supposed.  It  contains  a  population  of  nearly  20,- 
000  souls,  and  is  beautifully  situated  on  the  south  side  of 


312  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

the  Yenisei  River.  It  is  a  great  center  for  disposing  of 
furs  obtained  by  the  hunters  of  northern  Siberia,  who 
are  generally  Samoyeds,  Tunguses  and  Ostjaks,  whose 
numbers  between  the  Obi  and  Yenisei  rivers  are  estimated 
to  be  about  25,000.  They  subsist  almost  entirely  by 
hunting  and  fishing,  in  which,  with  the  use  of  the  most 
primitive  hooks  and  bows,  they  are  remarkably  success- 
ful ;  but  being  nomadic  and  improvident,  like  our  Amer- 
ican Indians,  they  accumulate  no  more  than  will  supply 
their  present  necessities. 

The  principal  animals  found  in  the  province  of  Yeni- 
seisk are  the  bear,  wolf,  reindeer,  white  fox,  ermine,  elk 
and  sable. 

In  capturing  the  bear  the  Samoyeds  adopt  an  original 
plan,  one  which  I  do  not  remember  being  practiced  by 
any  other  tribe.  Bears  are  more  or  less  like  the  deer  in 
their  habit  of  visiting  a  special  locality  by  a  particular 
route  ;  the  Samoyed  therefore  takes  advantage  of  this 
habit  by  fixing  his  trap  in  bruin's  way  :  A  wooden  plat- 
form is  erected  around  a  tree  at  such  height  from  the 
ground  that  to  reach  the  center  of  it  a  bear  must 
stand  upon  his  hind  legs.  The  platform  is  filled  with 
very  sharp  iron  spikes  running  up  two  inches  above  the 
surface,  while  above  them  and  made  fast  to  the  tree  is 
placed  a  piece  of  meat.  In  rearing  up  to  secure  this 
meat  the  bear  transfixes  his  fore-feet  on  the  sharp  spikes, 
and  is  unable  to  release  himself. 

Snow  was  already  falling  about  Yeniseisk  during 
my  visit  to  the  place  in  September,  and  I  saw  a  large 
party  of  Tunguses  making  ready  for  a  trip  to  the  tundras, 
which  begin  about  thirty  miles  north  of  Yeniseisk  ;  the 
fishing  season  was  now  practically  over,  while  the  hunt- 
ing was  just  beginning.  I  did  not  visit  the  tundras,  be- 
cause my  time  was  too  limited,  but  from  several  persons. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  313 

residents  of  Yeniseisk,  who  were  thoroughly  familiar 
with  Northern  Siberia,  I  obtained  a  description  which 
was  no  doubt  more  accurate  than  I  could  have  secured  by 
paying  a  short  visit  to  that  intensely  dreary  section. 

There  is  no  place  on  earth  that  can  compare  with  the 
tundras  for  desolation  and  extreme  cold,  unless  we  choose 
to  bring  the  arctic  regions  into  the  contrast.  Our  great 
western  plains  are  only  miniature  tracts  of  level  country, 
and  their  product  of  thin  grass  is  as  a  bounteous  dispen- 
sation of  nature  when  compared  with  the  almost  meas- 
ureless, frozen-hearted,  worse  than  barren  deserts  of 
northern  Siberia.  This  great  verdureless  plain  extends 
from  the  center  of  northern  Russia,  six  thousand  miles 
across  Siberia,  until  it  impinges  on  the  fretful  shores  of 
the  Kamtchatkan  sea  and  Behring's  Strait.  For  ten 
months  in  the  year  this  immense  stretch  of  hunger-laden 
shore  is  covered  with  snow  ;  not  so  much  as  a  dry  twig, 
frosted  leaf,  or  drifting  scallops  about  some  fallen  tree, 
is  there  to  relieve  the  one  dead,  shimmering,  shivering 
ocean  waste  of  trackless  snow  ;  nothing,  like  a  bubble  in 
mid-ocean,  unless  may  be  seen  on  the  expansive  plain  some 
lonely  hunters  braving  arctic  perils  in  quest  of  the  rein- 
deer. 

An  American  who  spent  three  years  in  Siberia  gives  the 
following  graphic  description  of  life  on  the  tundras : 

'k  A  winter  journey  over  the  great  northern  tundras  is 
inexpressibly  lonely  and  monotonous.  Day  after  day 
the  eye  rests  upon  the  same  illimitable  expanse  of  storm- 
drifted  snow,  and  night  after  night  the  traveller  camps 
in  an  utter  solitude,  over  which  seems  to  brood  the 
mournful  silence  of  universal  death.  I  do  not  know 
how  to  describe  in  words  the  impression  of  sadness, 
loneliness  and  isolation  from  all  human  interests,  which 
these  great  barren  plains  make  upon  the  imagination. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  315 

The  world  which  you  have  left,  with  all  its  cares,  strife 
and  busy  activity,  fades  away  into  the  unreal  imagery  of 
a  dream  ;  and  you  seem  removed  to  an  infinite  distance 
from  all  the  interests  and  occupations  of  your  previous 
life.  You  cannot  realize  that  you  are  still  in  the  same 
busy,  active,  money-getting  world  in  which  you  remem- 
ber once  to  have  lived.  The  cold,  still  atmosphere,  the 
red,  gloomy  twilight  of  the  low-hanging  sun,  and  the 
great  white  ghastly  ocean  of  snow  around  you,  are  all 
full  of  cheerless,  mournful  suggestions,  and  have  a  strange 
unearthliness  which  you  cannot  reconcile  or  connect  with 
any  part  of  your  previous  life. 

"The  pleasantest  feature  of  winter  travel  in  Siberia  is 
camping-out  at  night.  All  day  long  you  suffer  from 
cold,  hunger  and  fatigue  ;  you  lose  your  way  in  blinding 
snow-storms,  or  become  exhausted  by  the  constant  strug- 
gle to  keep  warm  in  a  temperature  of  40°  or  50°  below 
zero  ;  but  the  anticipation  of  the  bright  evening  camp- 
fire  sustains  your  flagging  spirits,  and  enables  you  to  hold 
out  until  night.  We  usually  camped  as  soon  as  we  could 
find  wood  for  a  fire  after  it  grew  dark.  Three  sledges 
were  drawn  up  together  so  as  to  make  a  little  enclosure 
about  ten  feet  square  ;  the  snow  was  all  shovelled  out  of 
the  interior  and  banked  up  around  the  sides  like  a  snow 
fort ;  and  a  fire  was  built  at  the  open  end.  The  little 
snow  cellar  was  then  strewn  to  a  depth  of  three  or  four 
inches  with  twigs  of  trailing  pine  ;  shaggy  bearskins  were 
spread  down  to  make  a  warm,  soft  carpet;  and  our  fur 
sleeping-bags  and  swans-down  pillows  arranged  for  the 
night.  In  the  middle  of  the  enclosed  space  stood  a  low 
table  improvised  out  of  a  candle  box,  on  which  one  of 
our  native  drivers  soon  placed  two  cups  of  steaming  tea, 
a  few  pieces  of  frozen  rye  bread  and  some  dried  fish. 
Then  stretching  ourselves  out  in  luxurious  style  upon  our 


316  BUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

bearskin  carpet,  with  our  feet  to  the  fire  and  our  backs 
again stPpillows,  we  smoked,  drank  tea,  and  told  stories 
in  perfect  comfort.  After  supper  the  natives  piled  dry 
branches  of  trailing  pine  upon  the  fire  until  it  sent  up  a 
column  of  flame  ten  feet  in  height,  and  then,  squatted  in 
their  favorite  position  around  the  blaze,  they  would  sing 
for  hours  the  wild,  melancholy  songs  of  the  Kamchadals, 
or  tell  never-ending  stories  of  hardship  and  adventure  on 
the  coast  of  the  Icy  Sea.  At  last,  the  great  constella- 
tion of  Orion  marked  bed-time.  Our  stockings  were 
taken  off  and  dried  by  the  fire,  the  dogs  were  fed  their 
daily  allowance  of  dried  fish  each,  and  putting  on  our 
heaviest  fur  coats,  we  crawled  feet  first  into  our  wolfskin 
bags,  pulled  them  up  over  our  heads,  and  slept. 

"  A  camp,  in  the  middle  of  a  dark,  clear  winter's  night, 
presents  a  strange,  wild  appearance.  Imagine,  if  you 
can,  that  you  have  waked  up  at  some  unknown  hour 
after  midnight,  and  have  thrust  your  head  out  of  your 
frosty  fur  bag,  to  see  by  the  stars  what  time  it  is.  The 
fire  has  died  away  to  a  few  glowing  embers.  There  is 
just  light  enough  to  distinguish  the  dark,  crouching  forms 
of  the  natives,  some  sitting  upon  their  heels,  with  their 
backs  against  sledges,  some  squatting  in  a  row  by  the 
fire,  and  all  asleep.  Away  beyond  the  limits  of  the  camp 
stretches  the  desolate  steppe  in  a  series  of  long  snowy 
waves,  which  blend  gradually  into  a  great  white  frozen 
ocean,  and  are  lost  in  the  distance  and  darkness  of  night. 
High  overhead,  in  a  sky  which  is  almost  black,  sparkle 
the  bright  constellations  of  Orion  and  the  Pleiades,  the 
celestial  clocks  which  mark  the  long,  weary  hours  be- 
tween sunset  and  sunrise.  The  blue,  mysterious  stream- 
ers of  the  aurora  tremble  in  the  north,  now  shooting  up 
in  clear,  bright  lines  to  the  zenith,  and  then  waving  back 
and  forth  in  great  majestic  curves  over  the  silent  camp, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  317 

as  if  warning  back  the  adventurous  traveller  from  the 
unknown  regions  around  the  pole.  Silence  is  as  profound 
as  death.  Nothing  but  the  pulsating  of  the  blood  in  jour 
ears  and  the  heavy  breathing  of  your  sleeping  men, 
breaks  the  universal  lull. 

"  Suddenly  there  rises  upon  the  still  night  air  a  long, 
faint,  wailing  cry,  like  that  of  a  human  being  in  the  last 
extremity  of  suffering.  Gradually  it  swells  and  deepens, 
until  it  seems  to  fill  the  whole  atmosphere  with  its  vol- 
ume of  mournful  sound,  dying  away  at  last  into  a  low, 
despairing  moan.  It  is  the  signal  howl  of  a  Siberian  dog. 
In  a  moment  it  is  taken  up  by  another  upon  a  higher  key  ; 
two  or  three  more  join  in,  then  a  dozen,  then  twenty, 
fifty,  eighty,  until  the  whole  pack  of  one  hundred  dogs 
howl  an  infernal  chorus  together,  making  the  air  fairly 
tremble  with  sound,  as  if  from  the  heavy  bass  of  a  great 
organ. 

"  For  fully  a  minute  heaven  and  earth  seem  to  be  full  of 
yelling,  howling  fiends.  Then,  one  by  one  they  begin  to 
drop  off,  the  unearthly  tumult  grows  fainter  and  fainter, 
until  at  last,  it  ends  as  it  began,  in  one  long  and  inex- 
pressibly melancholy  wail,  and  the  camp  becomes  silent 
again  as  death.  One  or  two  of  your  men  move  restlessly 
in  their  sleep,  as  if  the  mournful  howls  blended  unpleas- 
antly with  their  dreams,  but  no  one  wakes,  and  a  death- 
like silence  again  pervades  heaven  and  earth. 

"Suddenly  the  aurora  shines  out  with  increased  bril- 
liancy, and  its  waving  swords  sweep  back  and  forth 
across  the  dark,  starry  sky,  and  light  up  the  snowy  steppe 
with  transitory  flashes  of  colored  radiance,  as  if  the  gates 
of  heaven  were  opening  and  closing  upon  the  dazzling 
brightness  of  the  celestial  city.  Presently  it  fades  away 
again  to  a  faint,  diffused  glow  in  the  north,  and  one  pale 
green  streamer,  slender  and  bright  as  the  spear  of  Ithu- 


318  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AX  I) 

riel,  pushes  slowly  up  toward  the  zenith  until  it  touches 
with  its  translucent  point  the  jewelled  belt  of  Orion. 
Then  it,  too,  fades  and  vanishes,  and  nothing  but  a  bank 
of  pale  white  mist  on  the  northern  horizon  shows  the  lo- 
cation of  the  celestial  armory  whence  the  Arctic  spirits 
draw  the  gleaming  swords  and  lances  which  they  brand- 
ish nightly  over  the  lonely  Siberian  steppes. 

"  With  the  earliest  streak  of  dawn  the  camp  begins  to 
show  signs  of  animation.  The  dogs  get  out  of  the  deep 
holes  which  their  warm  bodies  have  melted  in  the  snow  ; 
the  natives  push  their  heads  out  of  the  neck-holes  of  their 
fur  coats,  and  whip  off  the  mass  of  frost  which  has  accu- 
mulated around  the  aperture  ;  a  fire  is  built,  tea  boiled, 
and  you  crawl  out  of  your  fur  bag  to  breakfast.  Fifteen 
or  twenty  minutes  are  spent  in  drinking  tea  and  eating 
dried  fish.  The  sledges  are  then  packed,  the  runners  wet 
down  to  cover  them  with  a  coating  of  ice,  and  before  the 
aurora  fades  away  in  the  increasing  light  of  sunrise,  you 
are  riding  again  at  a  brisk  trot  across  the  steppe.  In  this 
monotonous  routine  of  riding,  camping  and  sleeping,  day 
after  day,  and  week  after  week  pass  slowly  and  wearily 
away." 

During  the  summer  season  of  two  months,  there  de- 
velops upon  the  tundras  a  coarse  vegetation  which  very 
much  resembles  moss,  but  so  thick  and  strong  is  it  that 
nothing,  not  even  a  reindeer,  can  travel  through  it.  But  in 
the  winter  season  this  moss-grass  becomes  food  for  these 
animals,  from  which  they  remove  the  snow  by  digging 
with  their  sharp  feet. 

The  Tungueses  whom  I  saw  preparing  for  the  hunt 
had  a  large  number  of  dogs  which  they  took  with  them 
to  draw  their  sledges,  as  only  dogs  or  reindeers  can  be 
used  for  that  purpose  ;  they  also  had  a  number  of  sledges 
on  which  were  thrown  with  other  luggage  several  pairs  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  319 

snow-shoes.  In  answer  to  my  questions,  through  an  inter- 
preter, one  of  the  hunters  told  nie  his  party  was  going  in 
quest  of  sable,  the  skins  of  which  sold  in  Yeniseisk  as  high 
as  $40.  In  hunting  these  little  animals  the  Tunguese  re- 
lies chiefly  on  good  luck,  rather  than  any  special  skill. 
Tracks  of  the  sable  being  found. they  are  followed  until 
the  animal  is  either  caught,  when  it  is  despatched  with  a 
stick,  or  run  into  a  hole.  As  digging  it  out  would  be  next  to 
impossible,  and  as  the  animal  frequently  lies  abed  for 
three  or  four  days  at  a  time,  the  Tunguese  goes  into 
camp  to  wait  its  appearance.  Before  lying  by,  as  it 
were,  however,  the  hunter  fixes  a  number  of  snares 
around  the  hole,  to  which  he  generally  attaches  little 
bells.  He  then  takes  up  a  position  near  the  hole  and 
waits  ;  when  the  sable  comes  out  and  is  caught  the  tink- 
ling bells  alarm  the  hunter,  who  rushes  and  secures  his 
prize  before  it  can  gnaw  the  threads  in  two  which  hold 
its  feet. 

White  foxes  are  caught  in  traps  set  on  the  highest 
knolls  that  can  be  found,  for  it  is  well  known  that  this 
wary  animal  has  a  habit  of  repairing  each  night  to  some 
hill  to  make  his  observations.  Black  foxes  are  also  occa- 
sionally caught  in  Siberia,  but  they  are  exceedingly  rare. 
While  attending  the  Moscow  exposition  I  was  shown  a 
dressed  black-fox  skin  for  which  the  furrier  asked 
$1,000,  and  this  he  assured  me  was  not  an  unusual  price. 
Elk  hunting,  or  stalking,  as  it  is  called,  is  carried  on 
,  by  men  on  snow-shoes,  which  any  one,  not  acquainted 
with  the  numbers  of  these  animals  that  roam  the  tun- 
dras, would  suppose  very  hard  and  unremunerative  labor  ; 
but  so  numerous  are  elks,  and  also  reindeer,  in  that  bar- 
ren country,  that  they  may  be  found  in  large  herds 
without  expending  much  time  or  labor.  There  are  an- 
nually brought  down  to  Yeniseisk  for  sale  from  10?000 
to  20,000  elk  skins. 


320  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Elks  are  generally  shot,  but  reindeer  hunting  involves 
great  skill  and  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  animal's 
habits,  for  they  are  taken  alive  and  domesticated  for 
draught  purposes.  The  more  common  way  of  catching 
them  is  by  building  enclosures  into  which  they  are  driven 
and  then  secured  by  lassoing.  As  it  would  be  impos- 
sible to  find  material  on  the  tundras  out  of  which  an 
enclosure  could  be  made,  hunters  provide  themselves 
with  stakes  and  ropes  which  are  carried  on  sledges  to  the 
places  desired.  A  herd  of  reindeer  being  located  the 
enclosure  is  hastily  set  up,  after  which  a  party  of  hun- 
ters surround  and  drive  them  to  the  mouth,  which  is 
large  but  gradually  contracts  until  a  small  passage-way 
leads  into  a  circular  enclosure.  Their  horns  are  so  large 
and  many-pronged,  that  lassoing  them  may  be  easily 
done  by  even  a  novice. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  first  mine  I  had  the  privilege  of  visiting,  worked 
by  convict  labor,  was  at  Yeniseisk,  and  to  this  part  of  the 
object  of  my  visit  I  now  addressed  myself.  Siberia  is  rich 
in  mineral,  nor  is  the  country  limited  in  quantity  or  qual- 
ity to  the  more  common  metals,  for  it  also  has  large 
quantities  of  gold,  silver,  iron,  malachite,  copper,  zinc, 
etc.  Americans  are  wont  to  look  upon  our  own  territories 
as  the  richest  in  precious  metals  of  any  country  in  the 
world,  but  this  a  mistaken  idea.  Siberia  is  unquestion- 
ably richer  in  gold  and  silver  than  California,  Colorado, 
Nevada,  or  New  Mexico ;  she  already  produces  more 
gold  than  any  other  country,  notwithstanding  the  obsta-> 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


321 


cles  which  hedge  her  about,  and  every  year  the  product 
largely  increases. 


The  principal  gold  mines  in  Siberia  are  those  of  Yen- 
iseisk, Irkoutsk,  Kaust,  Kara,  Nijni  Udinsk  and  several 


322  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

along  the  Lena  River,  which  hitter  I  am  told  are  much 
richer  than  any  others  yet  opened  in  Siberia.  There  is 
also  a  very  large  gold  mine  on  the  river  Vitim,  in  the 
tians-Baikal  district,  from  which  there  is  now  taken 
nearly  $3,000,000  annually. 

The  Yeniseisk  «;old  mine  is  several  miles  distant  from 

o 

the  town  and  to  reach  it  we  had  therefore  to  have  re- 
course to  our  tumbril.  The  road  led  through  a  dread- 
fully rough  country  and  crossed  several  streams  that  were 
so  deep  the  bed  of  our  vehicle  was  wet.  Beaching  the 
mine  I  was  somewhat  surprised  to  find  it  a  placer  digging, 
for  my  idea  was  that  here  I  should  find  convicts  at  work 
far  under  the  earth  upon  whom  I  might  observe  the  effects 
of  perpetual  banishment  from  sunshine.  While  I  did  not? 
therefore,  go  under  ground  in  quest  of  information  of  an 
extremely  unpleasant  character,  I  did  witness  many  sights 
of  interest  connected  with  Siberian  mining  and  the  oper- 
ation of  convict  labor. 

A  very  large  space  of  ground  was  dug  over,  but  there 
was  employed  altogether  not  more  than  400  laborers, 
about  one-fourth  of  whom  were  free-men,  that  is,  con- 
victs who  had  served  their  sentences  but  remained  in  the 
country  because  they  could  never  collect  enough  money 
to  take  them  to  Russia  again,  or  for  some  other  reasons. 
*Thcse  mines,  like  a  majority  of  others  in  Siberia,  are 
worked  by  private  corporations  or  capitalists,  who  hire 
convict  laborers  from  the  Government.  This  system  has 
been  in  operation  for  many  years,  owing  to  the  fact  that, 
prior  thereto,  dishonest  officials  robbed  the  Government 
of  the  mineral  yield  so  that  the  mines  were  worked  at  a 
continual  loss. 

The  mining  at  Yeniseisk  is  performed  in  a  primitive 
way.  A  large  cylinder  with  maivy  perforations  takes  the 
place  of  the  washing  pan  used  in  the  early  days  of  Cali- 


324  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

forma.  Into  this  cylinder,  which  is  made  to  revolve,  the 
gold-bearing  earth  and  stones  are  placed,  over  which  a 
stream  of  water  runs.  The  yield  was  not  large,  but  an 
officer  was  there  to  inspect  every  cylinder  and  make  re- 
port of  its  contents,  which  report  was  transmitted  to  the 
Government.  The  gold  bullion,  dust  and  quartz  is  taken 
by  team  to  Irkoutsk,  where  there  are  reducing  works. 
These  teams  are  sent  out  from  Yeniseisk  about  four  times 
each  year  and  are  always  accompanied  by  a  cossack  guard 
to  protect  the  treasure  from  falling  into  the  hands  of 
highway  plunderers. 

I  witnessed  no  special  hardships  upon  the  convict  lab- 
orers at  these  mines,  nothing  more  than  may  be  seen  on  a 
visit  to  almost  any  penitentiary  in  the  United  States.  I  saw 
a  few  men  chained  to  wheelbarrows,  and  others  having 
chains  on  their  wrists  and  ankles,  but  it  did  not  appear 
that  they  suffered  greatly.  But  I  was  afterward  in- 
formed that  the  mines  near  Yeniseisk  were  controlled  by 
a  very  humane  and  charitable  capitalist  whose  treatment 
of  those  in  his  employ  was  exceptionally  considerate. 

Upon  our  return  from  the  mines  we  came  upon  a  for- 
lorn, exceedingly  wretched  appearing  man  who,  in  re- 
sponse to  Schleuter's  inquiries,  stated  that  he  was  an  ex- 
ile, having  a  habitation  in  the  mountainous  region 
thereabouts.  There  was  something  about  the  man  which 
I  could  not  resist,  perhaps  it  was  the  melting  and  intelli- 
gent expression  of  his  eyes,  or  the  sorrowful,  pitiable 
look  that  he  gave  us,  or  a  thankful  recognition  for  our 
condescension  in  addressing  him  so  kindly.  I  therefore 
inquired  the  distance  to  his  lodgings,  and  finding  it  com- 
paratively near  immediately  decided  to  pay  him  a  visit. 
After  a  drive  of  perhaps  half  an  hour  we  descended  a 
mountain  beyond  the  base  of  which  there  was  a  long,  level 
stretch  of  treeless  plain  covered  with  snow.  In  this 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBElilA. 

cheerless  solitude  we  soon  found  the  exile's  abode,  which 
I  was  astonished  to  see  was  an  exact  counterpart  of  4  the 
mud  "dug-outs  "  still  to  be  found  scattered  all  over  our 
western  territories. 

T  was  glad  to  find  that  the  poor  exile  who  had  excited 
in  me  so  much  interest  and  compassion  was  not  all 
alone  in  this  dreadfully  dreary  spot,  and  that  he  had  a 
companion  whose  lot  was  no  more  fortunate  than  his  own  ; 
besides  his  fellow  exile  there  was  a  faithful  dog,  companion 
to  them  both,  whose  vigils  never  waned,  guarding  against 
intrusions  of  wild  animals  and  none  the  less  suspicious 
of  strange  people  like  ourselves. 

The  abode  of  our  unhappy  exile  consisted  of  a  slight 
excavation  over  which  was  a  boarded  double  room  cov- 
ered on  the  top  with  branches  of  trees ;  the  whole  was 
banked  with  earth,  two  feet  thick,  so  that  a  fairly  com- 
fortable house  was  had,  warm  in  winter  and  cool  in  sum- 
mer. A  door  on  the  south  side  led,  by  one  step  down, 
into  the  one  spacious  room,  which  was  warmed  by  a  fire 
of  fir-wood  burning  in  an  improvised  stove  of  too  hybrid 
a  character  to  admit  of  description.  The  floor  of  the 
room  was  made  of  loose  boards  uneven  in  length  and 
thickness,  but  joined  together  with  much  care  to  exclude 
dampness.  A  bed  was  made  in  one  corner  by  driving 
stakes  into  the  ground  which  protruded  about  two  feet  and 
to  which  lateral  and  cross- wise  strips  were  nailed  to  receive 
the  bedding  of  wolf  and  bear  skins.  An  icon  of  the  Ma- 
donna hung  on  the  wall,  before  which  a  little  tallow  can- 
dle, made  of  wolf's  lard  (so  he  told  me),  was  kept  burn- 
ing ;  three  shelves,  two  stools  and  a  box  composed  all 
the  funiture  in  the  room.  His  cooking  utensils  were 
meager,  but  there  was  a  samovar  steaming  on  the  stove, 
which  to  every  Russian  is  next  in  importance  to  his  icon. 

We  were  welcomed  to  these  primeval  appearing  quar- 
21 


326  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ters  with  a  genuine  hospitality.  After  tea  had  been 
drunk  I  begged  of  the  exile  to  tell  me  the  circumstances 
under  which  he  was  banished,  and  something  of  the  life 
he  had  led  in  Siberia.  First  being  assured  that  I  was  an 
American  in  quest  of  information  concerning  convict 
life  in  Siberia,  he  recited  his  story  to  me  through  my  in- 
terpreter, which  briefly  repeated  is  substantially  as  fol- 
lows : 

"My  home  was,  until  1873,  near  the  village  of  Mie- 
chow,  which  is  in  the  southern  part  of  Poland,  nearly  two 
hundred  versts  from  Warsaw.  I  belonged  to  a  commu- 

O 

nal  estate,  which  was  originally  the  property  of  our  no- 
bleman Kratznich,  but  after  the  order  of  liberation  I 
remained  attached  to  the  estate,  and  tried  to  draw  f  rom 
the  soil  sustenance  for  my  family,  consisting  of  a  wife 
and  two  children.  I  was  fairly  prosperous,  though  there 
is  little  certainty  in  the  crops  of  my  district,  one  year 
being  abundant,  and  perhaps  for  one  or  two  seasons  fol- 
lowing a  complete  failure.  However,  I  had  no  reason 
for  complaint,  since  many  of  my  neighbors  pronounced 
me  the  most  fortunate  peasant  among  them. 

44  My  misfortune  began  in  the  spring  of  1873,  when 
there  came  to  my  cottage  home  a  brother  to  my  wife, 
who  had  fled  from  the  authorities  ;  he  was  charged  with 
having  given  aid  to  the  Nihilists  and  also  with  being 
a  member  of  the  Terrorist  party.  Well,  I  gave  him  shel- 
ter over  night,  and  the  next  morning  three  gendarmes, 
who  had  been  pursuing  him  for  several  days,  found  and 
arrested  him  in  my  house  ;  I  felt  certain  of  his  innocence, 
for  he  swore  to  myself  and  wife,  before  the  Little 
Mother,  that  the  accusation  was  false.  I  tried  to  prevail 
on  the  gendarmes  to  release  him,  but  my  pleadings, 
alas  !  only  served  to  endanger  my  own  liberty  ;  I  was  ac- 
cused by  the  officers  of  aiding  my  brother  to  escape,  and 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


327 


despite  the  lamentations  and  prayers  of  my  wife  and 
children  they  tore  me  away  from  home,  which  I  have 
never  since  beheld." 

At  this  point  in  his  narrative,  the  poor  fellow  broke 
into  tears,  and  burying  his  face  in  his  hands,  cried  as  if 
his  heart  were  breaking.  We  tried  hard  to  console 
him,  so  after  venting  his  grief  for  several  minutes  he 
proceeded : 


ARREST  OF  THE  POLE  AND  HIS  BROTHER. 

"  I  was  carried  to  Warsaw  and  thrown  into  prison  where 
I  remained  nearly  one  week,  at  the  expiration  of  which 
time,  in  company  with  ten  others,  I  was  taken  to  Mos- 
cow without  having  any  trial  whatsoever.  From  Moscow 
I  was  banished  to  the  mines  at  Nijni  Udinsk,  which  are 
on  the  transport  route  between  Krasnoiarsk  and  Irkoutsk. 
Would  to  God  I  could  forget  the  sufferings  which  I  en- 
dured and  witnessed  among  my  fellow  convicts  while  on 
that  dreadful  journey. 

"When  I  left  Moscow  and  had  learned  my  sentence  my 
grief  was  so  intense  that  it  seemed  I  could  not  possibly 
survive ;  day  and  night  I  could  see  my  wife  and  children 


328  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

standing  beside  our  little  log  cottage  casting  their  stream- 
ing eyes  after  me  as  the  gendarmes  rushed  me  away  with 
them.  This  great  grief ,  in  a  measure,  made  me  uncon- 
scious of  the  cruelties  to  which  I  was  subjected.  It  was 
in  the  summer  time  when  we  made  the  journey  and  the 
weather  was  so  hot  as  to  blister  every  part  of  our  persons 
exposed  to  the  sun.  I  was  heavily  ironed,  like  the  most 
despicable  malefactor,  though  I  was  as  innocent  of  doing 
any  wrong  to  the  government,  either  in  act  or  sympathy, 
as  a  babe  on  its  mother's  breast.  The  irons  I  wore  cut 
my  wrists  and  ankles  so  dreadfully  that  I  became  almost 
exhausted  from  the  loss  of  blood,  early  on  the  journey. 

* «  The  officers  gave  me  some  felt  to  bind  my  wounds,  but 
this  only  aggravated  my  sufferings,  as  they  no  doubt 
knew  it  would.  The  dust  and  heat  caused  a  rapid  swell- 
ing of  the  afflicted  parts,  which  turned  black,  and  had  I 
not  stopped  at  a  way-station  on  the  route  they  would  cer- 
tainly have  mortified. 

"  I  cannot  tell  you  of  all  the  acts  of  inhumanity  prac- 
ticed towards  us  while  on  our  way  to  Udinsk ;  my  con- 
dition was  somewhat  relieved  through  a  judicious  use  of 
the  few  roubles  I  chanced  to  have  with  me  at  the  time  of 
my  arrest,  but  the  other  prisoners  who  had  no  means  what- 
ever were  literally  goaded  to  death  on  the  transport  high- 
way. 

"  I  had  heard  much  of  the  hardships  endured  by  con- 
victs in  the  mines,  but  so  great  were  my  sufferings  on  the 
route  that  I  was  ready  to  hail  the  mines  with  joyful  satis- 
faction, so  .when  at  last  we  came  in  sight  of  Udinsk 
those  of  my  party  who  were  consigned  to  labor  in  the 
gold  mines  there  looked  on  its  spires  with  many  manifes- 
tations of  pleasure. 

"  A  very  great  majority  of  the  prisoners  were  ready 
for  the  hospital  rather  than  the  mines,  but  several  poor 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  329 

fellows  who  had  become  the  butt  of  official  brutality 
were  hustled  into  the  mines  with  feet  and  hands  almost 
putrifying  from  injuries  produced  by  their  heavy  mana- 
cles. I  was  more  fortunate,  however,  thanks  to  my  rou- 
bles, and  for  two  weeks  I  had  a  good  bed  in  the  hospital, 
which  was  looked  after  by  a  local  charity.  When  my  re- 
covery was  complete  I  was  ordered  into  the  mines,  f  ully 
three  hundred  feet  under  ground,  and  assigned  to  labor  with 
another  convict ;  we  were  required  to  trundle  a  large  bar- 
row, I  at  the  handles  and  he  to  draw  by  means  of  rope 
and  breast-yoke  attached  to  the  axle  of  the  barrow. 

"  Before  my  money  was  exhausted  I  did  not  have  any 
extreme  hardships  in  the  mine,  but  when  my  last  copeck 
was  gone  then  began  sufferings  which  I  dread  to  recall. 
Heavy  chains  were  put  on  me  again,  about  my  neck, 
waist  and  ankles,  while  I  was  compelled  to  labor  at  least 
eighteen  hours  every  day  ;  nor  was  the  labor  of  an  ordi- 
nary kind,  but  required  such  exertions  that  I  have  seen 
many  men  faint  and  fall  under  it.  In  numerous  instances 
when  exhausted  nature  could  do  no  more,  a  manifesta- 
tion of  fatigue  would  cause  the  sufferer  to  be  unmerci- 
fully punished ;  my  shoulders  have  been  bared  to  the 
knout  on  many  occasions  for  imaginary  derelictions,  and 
twice  I  was  tied  up  by  the  thumbs  because  I  fell  on  my 
barrow  from  exhaustion.  The  more  common  modes  of 
punishment  practiced  at^Nijni  Udinsk  are  by  the  knout, 
plete,  scorpion  and  suspension  by  the  thumbs.  I  was 
never  subjected  to  the  scorpion,  but  have  seen  it  applied 
not  a  few  times.  This  instrument  for  flagellation  is  made 
like  the  knout,  except  that  in  place  of  the  knots  on  the 
thongs  there  are  small  hooks  which,  with  the  force  of 
each  blow,  are  driven  into  the  flesh  and  on  being  jerked 
out  draw  portions  of  flesh  with  them.  It  is  a  dreadful 
sight  to  witness  a  flogging  with  this  most  terrible  of 


EXILE  LIFK  IX   SIBERIA.  331 

scourges,  about  one-fourth  of  those  thus  punished  dying 
from  its  effects. 

"  On  rare  occasions  the  heads  of  convicts,  who  have 
incurred  the  hatred  of  their  brutal  guards,  are  bound 
with  strips  of  rawhide  which  are  drawn  so  tightly  that 
the  eyes  of  the  sufferer  burst  out ;  the  face  turns  purple 
and  streams  of  perspiration  pour  from  every  part  of  the 
body.  This  punishment  is  also  generally  fatal,  but  I  am 
glad  to  say  it  is  not  often  inflicted.  But  there  is  a  pun- 
ishment which  is  more  terrible  than  either  of  the  others 
mentioned,  because  it  is  protracted  sometimes  through 
years.  That  which  I  refer  to  is  the  confinement  of  pris- 
oners in  damp  portions  of  the  mines  from  whence  they 
are  never  allowed  to  depart  until  death  releases  them.  I 
have  seen  men  and  women  too,  who  were  serving  life  sen- 
tences at  hard  labor  in  the  mines,  loaded  with  chains  and 
kept  at  work  in  pools  of  water  which  were  both  work- 
shops and  bed  to  them  for  years.  It  is  astonishing  how 
long  some  persons  will  survive  this  horrible  treatment ; 
they  grow  thinner  and  thinner  each  day  until  their  bodies 
become  almost  transparent ;  thin  cheeks  and  eyes  can  be 
seen  in  dark  recesses  of  the  face,  the  hair  falls  out,  the  voice 
becomes  almost  inaudible,  the  bones  appear  sharply  defined 
under  athin  skin  and  at  last  they  fall  to  rise  no  more  forever. 
Amid  the  flickering  lights  which  so  imperfectly  illumine 
the  mines  these  poor  wretches  appear  like  gnomes,  or 
spectres  of  famine,  which  no'  one  possessed  of  the  least 
humanity  can  look  upon  without  deepest  pity. 

"  I  endured  these  dreadful  sights  and  punishments 
for  eight  years,  which  was  the  full  term  of  my  hard 
labor  sentence.  But  my  misfortunes  did  not  termi- 
nate with  this  sentence,  for  I  am  yet  doomed  to  nine 
more  years  of  exile  life  in  the  district  which  I  now 
inhabit.  I  do  not  believe  it  is  a  common  thing  to  divide 


332 


UUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  333 

a  sentence  into  periods  of  hard  labor  and  simple  exile,  but 
this  has  been  my  lot,  and  I  must  endure  it.  An  equally 
hard  portion  of  my  misfortune  is  the  impossibility  of 
communicating  with  my  family,  not  a  single  word  from 
whom  has  been  received  since  the  day  I  was  so  causelessly 
taken  away  from  them,  nine  years  ago.  Neither  my  wife 
nor  I  can  write,  nor  could  any  of  our  neighbors,  so  that 
I  have  found  no  means  of  exchanging  messages,  and  am 
therefore  in  ignorance  of  their  condition;  they  maybe 
dead ;  or  my  wife,  hopeless  of  my  return  again,  may 
now  be  wedded  to  another ;  but,  if  there  have  been  no 
changes  yet,  what  shall  I  expect  in  the  next  nine  years? 
My  heart  is  buried  under  afflictions  which  have  passed, 
and  forebodings  of  evils  which  must  come  to  me. 

"  I  live  here  in  this  little  house,  dividing  it  with  my 
equally  unfortunate  neighbor,  and  we  subsist  on  what  we 
can  make  by  hunting  and  fishing.  My  present  condition 
I  would  not  deplore,  but  for  remembrances  of  my  home 
in  Poland,  which,  alas  !  is  my  home  no  more." 

I  was  so  interested  in  the  exile's  story  as  to  be  quite 
unconscious  of  the  approach  of  darkness,  or  that  I  had 
spent  nearly  three  hours  in  the  snow-covered  cabin.  But 
I  did  not  forget  to  place  ten  roubles  in  the  poor  fellow's 
hand,  and  to  promise  him  that  I  should  visit  Warsaw  be- 
fore returning  to  America,  and  make  an  effort  to  com- 
municate whatever  message  he  might  wish  to  send  his 
wife.  He  thanked  me  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  and  said  : 
"  Tell  her  that  my  greatest  hope  is  to  see  her  again,  and 
that  the  hardest  part  of  my  sentence  having  already  been 
served  I  shall  not  cease  my  prayers  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  our  lives  that  we  may  meet  again  and  be  happy 
in  the  little  cottage  where  we  were  parted  so  long  ago." 

That  every  statement  made  to  me  by  the  confiding  exile 
was  true  has  never  excited  in  me  the  least  doubt,  while  I 


334  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

i 

have  repeated  them  (though  in  my  own  language)  with- 
out any  exaggeration.  My  own  observations,  besides  the 
corroborating  stories  I  heard  from  others  who  had  vol- 
untarily and  involuntarily  visited  the  mines,  quite  con- 
vince me  that  it  would  be  next  to  impossible  to  exagger- 
ate the  brutal  treatment  practiced  by  guards  in  Siberia 
towards  their  miserable  prisoners. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

BUT  for  the  snow  on  the  ground  it  would  have  been 
quite  dark  when  we  left  the  exile's  abode  to  drive  back 
to  Yeniseisk.  The  way  was  not  marked  by  any  sem- 
blance of  a  road,  but  I  anticipated  no  difficulty  in  mak- 
ing the  return  trip  safely  and  speedily.  Our  horses  had 
been  chilled  by  so  long  standing  in  the  raw  atmosphere, 
and  when  we  started  them  they  broke  away  in  a  run 
which  threatened  destruction  to  our  tumbril  and  injury  to 
ourselves.  We  got  them  checked  finally,  however,  and 
were  bowling  along  in  a  hilarious  spirit  until,  reaching 
the  apex  of  a  hill,  I  looked  out  over  the  glinting  land- 
scape, and  was  upon  the  point  of  making  some  observa- 
tion on  the  beautiful  scene,  when  I  descried  three  black 
objects  nearly  two  hundred  yards  distant,  which  I  thought 
were  dogs.  But  Schleuter  was  too  old  a  traveller  in 
Siberia  to  be  deceived,  and  immediately  upon  seeing  them 
he  exclaimed:  "Wolves!  Get  your  pistol  ready,  for 
we  may  be  in  for  it  to-night." 

I  must  confess  that  his  remark  excited  some  fear  in 
me,  for  with  it  the  stories  I  had  read  of  travellers  being 
chased  and  eaten  by  these  voracious  beasts,  came  back  to 
me  with  chromatic  exaggeration.  This  partially  sub- 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


335 


sided  when  I  saw  the  wolves  making  off  from  us,  and  to 
facilitate  their  retreat  I    tired    two    shots  at  them,  but 


1 


without  effect.  However,  we  had  not  proceeded  more 
than  two  miles  further  when  I  saw  standing  in  the  way 
we  were  going  two  more  wolves,  which  were  so  bold  that  I 


336  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

shot  one  of  them  not  more  than  twenty  feet  from  our 
vehicle,  while  the  other  trotted  off  slowly,  notwithstand- 
ing the  shots  I  fired  at  it.  We  had  twelve  miles  to  go 
before  arriving  at  Yenisiesk,  and  I  saw  on  the  route,  al- 
together, not  less  than  fifty  wolves,  all  of  the  large, 
ferocious  species  which  does  not  hesitate  to  attack  trav- 
ellers, when  slightly  pressed  by  hunger. 

Arriving  at  the  city  about  eleven  o'clock,  we  related 
our  experience  with  the  wolves,  when  the  landlord  told  us 
that  a  courier  had  just  come  in  who  had  been  set  upon, 
by  a  pack,  nearly  twenty  miles  south  of  Yeniseisk,  on 
his  route  from  Irkoutsk,  and  that  to  save  himself  he 
had  ridden  his  horse  almost  to  death. 

Any  mention  of  wolves  before  a  crowd  in  a  Siberian 
inn  is  sure  to  call  forth  from  one  or  more  persons,  who 
may  be  present,  stories  of  personal  experience  with  the 
dreadful  creatures,  in  which  hair-breadth  escapes  figure 
very  prominently,  but  as  wolves  are  more  plentiful  in 
Siberia  than  squirrels  are  in  our  western  States,  such  re- 
lations are  made  more  out  of  vaunting  ambition  than  with 

O 

an  expectation  of  interesting  those  who  listen  to  them. 
But  for  me  stories  of  wolf  and  bear  hunting  are  always  en- 
tertaining, and  I  was  therefore  very  much  delighted  to 
hear  second-hand  —  through  rny  interpreter — the  fol- 
lowing, told  by  an  Ispravnik — Governor — from  the  Tomsk 
Government.  It  chancod  that  this  distinguished  func- 
tionary had  arrived  at  Yeniseisk  on  the  day  I  visited 
the  mines,  and  wsis  a  guest  of  the  inn  at  which  I  was 
slopping.  He  had  four  servants  with  him,  all  exiles, 
and  otherwise  manifested  the  dignity  of  his  magisterial 
office,  so  that  when  he  spoke  all  gave  him  a  respectful 
hearing.  To  preserve  the  identity  of  the  relator  I  will 
give  the  story  in  the  first  person  : 

"  It  has  now  been  just  two  yvurs  since  business,  con- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


337 


iiected  with  the  Government,  called  me  to  Irkoutsk,  and 
from  thence  to  the  Alexandreffsky  Central  prison,  which 
is  nearly  one  hundred  versts  north  of  the  city.  The 


winter,  you  remember,  set  in  unusually  early  in   1880, 
and  when  I  started  from  Tomsk  there  was  so  much  snow 


338  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

on  the  ground  that  a  troika  could  be  used.  I  met  with 
no  adventure  on  the  trip  to  Irkoutsk,  where  my  business 
was  speedily  transacted .  The  Governor  at  Irkoutsk  placed 
his  own  private  team  at  my  disposal  for  the  trip  to  Alex- 
andreffsky,  and  with  a  good  driver  I  started  out  early  in 
the  morning,  calculating  to  reach  my  destination  before 
night  set  in,  as  I  never  fancied  driving  on  a  lonely  high- 
way even  in  the  moonlight. 

"  It  has  been  my  rule,  whenever  travelling  through 
any  of  the  Siberian  Governments,  to  carry  with  me  a 
trusty  rifle,  which  I  purchased  on  my  last  visit  to  St. 
Petersburg,  because  it  has  more  than  once  served  me  well 
in  the  midst  of  imminent  danger,  but  unfortunately,  on 
the  occasion  which  I  am  now  about  to  relate,  I  failed  to 
provide  myself  with  the  usual  complement  of  cartridges, 
taking  less  than  twenty,  when  I  generally  carry  not  less 
than  fifty. 

44  We  started  out  from  Irkoutsk  in  high  glee,  taking 
with  us  a  good  quantity  of  quass  and  vodka,  which  serves 
one  so  well,  you  know,  on  a  journey  of  the  character  I 
was  about  to  take.  Nothing  whatever  occurred  to  im- 
pede our  progress  until  nearly  three  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon, when  my  Yemtschik  became  so  confused  by  the 
vodka  he  had  internperately  indulged  that  he  left  the  road 
and  ran  the  troika  over  a  log,  upsetting  it  into  a  bank  of 
snow,  but  we  escaped  injury.  This  episode  was  too  com- 
mon to  be  mentioned  but  for  the  fact  that  our  vehicle 
was  so  badly  broken  that  we  stopped  nearly  two  hours 
making  repairs,  and  after  going  only  a  short  distance 
further  we  again  broke  down,  our  trouble  being  a  broken 
shaft  and  tug,  which  was  caused  by  the  fractious  capers 
of  one  of  the  horses. 

"  It  was  nearly  seven  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  when  I 
heard  the  prolonged  howl  of  a  wolf,  which  was  directly 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  339 

answered  by  several  others  in  different  directions.  These 
sounds,  however,  did  not  alarm  me  in  the  least,  for  I  have 
heard  them  too  frequently  ;  but  it  was  not  long  before  I 
saw  crossing  the  roadway  ahead  of  us  packs  of  five  and 
six  wolves,  while  others  trotted  along  behind  us  in  a 
sneaking  manner.  1  knew  these  were  the  skirmish  ing- 
forces  and  refrained  from  shooting,  knowing  full  well 
that  if  I  should  kill  one  the  others  would  devour  him,  and 
once  tasting  blood  and  flesh  they  would  seek  to  finish 
their  repast  on  us. 

"My  driver  kept  the  horses  in  a  brisk  gallop,  realizing 
more  than  1  did  the  danger  which  now  threatened.  Grow- 
ing more  bold  each  minute  as  their  numbers  increased, 
the  wolves  appeared  on  every  side,  some  coming  up 
within  a  few  feet  of  our  troika  and  then  stopping  sud- 
denly to  stare  at  us.  Such  howling  I  never  before  or 
since  heard,  the  forest  being  apparently  full  of  the  hate- 
ful brutes,  and  every  howl  seeming  to  multiply  the  num- 
ber. At  length  they  grew  so  fearless  that  several  would 
run  out  quickly  and  snap  at  the  horses  and  then  dart  back 
again.  I  now  saw  that  it  was  full  time  for  action,  as 
each  moment  served  to  embolden  them,  and  once  they 
should  attack  our  horses  little  chance  would  remain  for 
escape.  Bringing  my  gun  up,  therefore,  I  shot  one 
of  the  wolves,  and  scarcely  did  his  blood  stain  the  snow 
before  not  less  than  one  hundred  piled  on  the  wounded 
animal  and  tore  him  limb  from  limb  almost  instantly.  I 
then  fired  two  other  shots  into  the  pack  and  must  have 
wounded  several  others,  judging  from  the  snarling  and 
growling  which  succeeded.  Looking  back  to  observe  the 
effects  of  my  shots  I  could  see  a  myriad  of  wolves  run- 
ning to  where  the  others  were  feasting,  until  they  were 
like  flies  in  summer  time  swarming  over  a  putrefying  car- 
cass. 


340  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

"  It  was  only  a  few  minutes  after  I  had  shot,  and  before 
we  got  out  of  sight  of  the  pack,  when  every  vestige  of  the 
wounded  wolves  had  disappeared  in  the  voracious  maws 
of  their  comrades,  and  the  latter  were  again  soon  howling 
after  us. 

"  The  rest  which  our  horses  had  by  reason  of  the  acci- 
dents already  described  was  very  advantageous  to  us,  for 
they  were  now  put  to  their  full  speed  without  showing 
any  suffering;  but  this  speed  could  not  avail  against  the 
wolves,  which  gained  on  us  so  rapidly  that  before  we  had 
gone  six  versts  from  where  I  fired  my  first  shot  they  were 
upon  us  again.  When  they  reached  the  troika  and  were 
ready  to  spring  in,  I  shot  two  more,  which  were  immedi- 
ately pounced  upon  by  the  entire  pack,  so  we  made 
another  gain  of  two  versts  before  they  left  this  second 
feast  and  were  upon  us  again. 

"  I  had  every  reason  for  husbanding  my  shots,  for  our 
escape  lay  in  keeping  the  wolves  from  us  by  killing  one 
of  their  number  at  a  time,  so  as  to  distract  the  pack. 
I  therefore  continued  this  desultory  warfare  until  my  last 
cartridge  had  been  fired,  and  we  were  yet  nearly  ten 
versts  from  Alexandreffsky.  I  had  caused  the  death  of 
perhaps  twenty-five  or  more  wolves,  but  there  was  no 
apparent  diminution  in  number,  nor  were  there  any  mani- 
festations of  abandoning  the  attack  on  the  part  of  those 
that  had  survived.  Our  horses  had  now  become  badly 
jaded,  my  driver  almost  lost  his  reason  through  fright, 
and  the  little  hope  I  had  left  was  hardly  bright  enough  to 
show  on  a  back-ground  of  despondency.  I  was  not  per- 
mitted to  lapse  into  a  reflective  mood,  however,  for  the 
hungry,  carnivorous,  blood-loving  wolves  came  after  us 
on  lightning  feet,  their  red  tongues  lolling  out  between 
vicious  fangs  which  sometimes  snapped  together  as  though 
they  felt  our  flesh  already  between  their  teeth.  My  gun 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


341 


was  now  useless,  but  I  carried  it  in  my  muffled  robes  until 
the  wolves  came  so  near  that  they  tried  to  leap  upon  me  ; 
then  I  wielded  it  as  a  bludgeon  with  excellent  effect, 
killing  three,  or  wounding  them  so  that  they  were  fallen 
upon  and  quickly  devoured.  But  this  successful  way  of 

rePelling  their  at- 
tacks did  not  avail  us 
long,  for  while  I 
combatted  with  more 
than  a  score,  nearly 
ten  times  that  num- 
ber ran  ahead  and  at- 
tacked the  horses.  I 
now  felt  that  it  was 
tim  e  to  abandon  hope , 
cross  myself  and  fall 
to  praying,  but  our 
poor  horses  battled 
so  nobly  for  life  that 
I  was  encouraged  by 
their  acts.  The  two 
outsiders  ran  on  at 
full  speed  for  nearly 
a  verst,  while  wolves 
were  hanging  at  their 
haunches  and  throats 
or  cutting  great 
gashes  in  their  legs 
and  sides.  I  was 
astonished  to  see  the 
horses  survive  so  long,  but  when  one  fell  at  length 
the  others  could  go  no  further,  and  here  our  last 
efforts  were  made  to  protect  our  lives.  My  driver,  hav- 
ing nothing  with  which  to  defend  himself,  was,  despite 
22 


342  JHJSS1AN  NIHILISM  AM) 

inv  exertions,    draped    from    his    seat   by  three  strong 

«/  O 

wolves,  and  as  he  fell  upon  the  snow  his  cries  for  aid 
almost  set  me  wild.  Oh,  how  the  poor  fellow  prayed  and 
called  to  me  while  the  ferocious  beasts  stripped  the  flesh 
from  his  bones  until  death  ended  the  torture  he  endured. 
Our  horses  shared  my  driver's  fate,  while  with  almost 
superhuman  strength  I  wielded  my  gun  and  scattered 
about  me  nearly  fifty  of  the  wolves  that  had  attacked 
myself  and  driver.  How  I  came  out  of  that  fiery  fur- 
nace alive  it  is  almost  impossible  for  me  to  say,  for  I 
fought  for  many  minutes,  which  seemed  an  age,  before 
assistance  came  in  the  person  of  two  exile  moujiks  who 
bravely  seized  clubs  and  rushed  to  my  aid.  We  were 
almost  on  the  outskirts  of  Alexandreffsky,  and  the  noise 
created  by  our  terrible  encounter  so*m  brought  others  to 
the  scene  of  action.  My  escape  was  chiefly  due  to  the 
successful  attack  on  the  horses  and  driver,  their  bodies 
serving  to  draw  away  from  me  nearly  all  the  pack.  But 
when  relieved  at  last,  upon  examination  I  found  that  my 
clothes  were  literally  in  shreds,  and  on  my  hands  and 
legs  were  several  severe  scratches  which,  in  my  excited 
condition,  I  had  not  before  discovered. 

"  The  wolves  were  driven  away  by  shooting  and  beating, 
but  not  until  the  horses  had  been  almost  entirely  devoured, 
and  of  the  guide  there  only  remained  a  grinning  skull 
bare  of  flesh,  the  half  of  one  hand,  and  a  portion  of  his 
back  and  pelvic  bone ;  his  limbs  had  been  torn  asunder 
and  carried  off  by  greedy  members  of  the  pack  to  some 
place  where  they  could  munch  the  bones  undisturbed. 
Of  my  rifle  there  remained  only  the  barrel ,  the  stock  hav- 
ing been  broken  and  lost,  and  nothing  in  my  possession 
do  I  esteem  so  valuable  as  this  relic  of  the  saddest  ex- 
perience and  adventure  in  all  my  life." 

We  all  applauded  heartily  the  Governor's  story,  which 


THE  GOVERNOR'S  RACE  WITH  THE  WOLVES. 


343 


344  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

was  undoubtedly  true,  and  this  approbation  stimulated 
others  to  relate  their  encounters  with  wild  animals  of  the 
northern  tundras ;  but  I  was  too  sleepy  to  take  any 
further  interest  in  Siberian  adventures,  and  stole  off  to 
bed. 

Having  gathered  about  all  the  information  accessible  at 
Yeniseisk,  on  the  following  day  I  started  for  Irkoutsk,  by 
way  of  Krasnoiarsk,  distant  eight  hundred  miles.  The 
return  trip  to  Krasnoiarsk  was  not  without  trouble  on 
account  of  snow,  which  had  fallen  to  a  depth  of  fully 
six  inches  ;  but  I  decided  to  hold  to  my  tumbril  rather 
than  buy  a  troika  (sledge)  because  I  felt  quite  sure,  as  did 
Schleuter,  that  we  should  find  no  snow  on  the  regular 
transport  route,  which  we  would  reach  in  less  than  two 
days'  travelling. 

We  had  not  proceeded  more  than  half  a  dozen  miles 
from  Yeniseisk  before  I  saw  two  wolves  dart  across  the  road 
about  one  hundred  yards  ahead  of  us.  Quickly  the 
Ispravnik's  story  came  back  to  me  and  I  pictured  myself 
in  the  midst  of  a  ferocious  pack  with  not  so  much  as  a 
club  for  defence.  Every  few  minutes  my  forebodings 
were  intensified  by  seeing  one  or  more  wolves  not  far  dis- 
tant from  us,  a  fact  which  did  not  appear  to  give  Schleu- 
ter the  least  alarm,  while  I  was  continually  forming  reso- 
lutions what  to  do  when  ' '  worse  should  come  to  worse." 

Let  me  assure  the  reader  that  we  did  not  camp  out ;  30 
far  from  being  satisfied  with  a  big  fire  and  a  warm  bed  in 
the  tumbril,  I  was  quite  willing  to  forego  comforts  for 
the  protection  of  an  inn,  one  of  which  we  found  about 
nine  o'clock  in  the  evening. 

"  Expect  nothing  and  you  will  not  be  disappointed," 
is  an  old  saying  which  none  should  forget  while  travel- 
ling in  Siberia,  but  its  moral  was  lost  en  me  when,  on 
proceeding  to  bed  at  the  inn,  I  found  no  where  to  lay 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  345 

my  head  except  on  the  floor,  mid  no  coverings  except 
those  of  my  own  providing.  But  there  were  no  wolves, 
bears  or  dreadful  night-mares,  so  that  the  night  was 
spent  with  really  less  discomfort  than  I  had  anticipated. 
Upon  arriving  at  Krasnoiarsk  I  sold  my  three  horses 
for  the  same  money  I  had  paid  for  them  and  started  on 
to  Irkoutsk  by  post  conveyance,  which  is  more  than  twice 
as  rapid  as  I  could  have  travelled  with  a  single  team. 
We  lost  no  time  in  preparation,  but  immediately  after 
disposing  of  my  horses  we  got  a  fresh  team  and  a  yem- 
tschik  who  was  lineally  descended  from  Jehu.  It  is  as- 
tonishing how  rapidly  one  can  travel  in  Siberia,  when  he 
is  willing  to  pay  for  fast  driving.  It  is  told  that  the  late 
Czar  on  one  occasion  sent  a  courier  to  Irkoutsk  with  in- 
structions to  bring  back  to  St.  Petersburg,  at  the  earliest 
possible  moment,  a  distinguished  person  who  had  been 
exiled  and  was  at  the  time  in  the  Irkoutsk  mines.  So 
regardful  was  the  courier  of  his  order  that  he  brought 
the  offender  from  Irkoutsk  to  St.  Petersburg — distance 
3,500  miles — in  just  eleven  days,  making  the  incredible 
speed  of  three  hundred  and  eighteen  miles  per  day,  or 
fourteen  miles  per  hour.  Having  no  desire  to  exagger- 
ate this  story  I  will  say  that  1,000  miles  of  the  journey 
was  performed  by  rail,  and  perhaps  500  by  steamer.  But  it 
is  not  an  uncommon  thing  for  the  Czar's  couriers  to  make 
200  miles  per  day.  In  such  cases  the  horses  must  suf- 
fer, though  each  relay  is  driven  not  more  than  twelve  or 
fifteen  miles.  When  extraordinary  haste  is  necessary 
everything  must  give  way  on  the  road  to  the  courier,  who 
telegraphs  ahead  for  horses,  and  has  the  swiftest  reserved 
for  him.  When  an  animal  falls  dead  in  harness,  which 
they  frequently  do,  the  courier  cuts  off  one  ear  from  the 
horse,  and  drives  on,  with  the  remaining  horses,  to  the 
next  station.  The  ears  thus  preserved  are  shown  to  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  347 

Czar  as  a  proof  of  the  speed  with  which  the  courier  exe- 
cuted his  mission. 

Four  days  of  rapid  travelling  brought  us  to  Irkoutsk, 
which  is  600  miles  from  Krasnoiarsk.  On  the  road  we 
passed  only  one  small  convoy  of  prisoners,  the  officers  of 
which  I  did  not  consider  it  worth  my  time  to  interrogate, 
as  they  were  half-drunk  and  inclined  to  be  quarrelsome. 

At  Nijni  Udinsk  we  stopped  only  a  short  time,  prefer- 
ring not  to  visit  the  mines  there  until  upon  my  return,  as 
I  was  anxious  to  reach  Irkoutsk  in  time  to  see  the  races, 
which  I  was  told  had  already  begun  and  would  continue 
only  two  or  three  days  longer. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

IRKOUTSK  is  a  handsome  city,  situated  very  much  like 
New  York,  being  built  on  a  tongue  of  land  formed  by  a 
sharp  curve  in  the  Angara  River.  The  place  contains  a 
population  of  nearly  35,000,  and  among  its  buildings  are 
a  score  of  churches  of  elegant  architectural  design  and 

~  o 

expensive  finish. 

We  had  to  cross  the  Angara  by  hand-ferry,  but  upon 
reaching  the  city's  side  more  than  a  dozen  droshky  driv- 
ers beseiged  us,  like  hackmen  in  American  cities,  one  of 
whom  we  engaged  to  take  us  and  our  luggage  to  De- 
coque's  hotel,  where  I  was  rejoiced  to  find  that  the  mana- 
ger could  speak  a  little  English. 

Irkoutsk  is  next  to  Yeniseisk  in  age,  having  been  found- 
ed in  1680,  the  former  in  1618.  It  has  become  the  great- 
est mart  on  the  overland  route  between  China  and  Rus- 
sia, while  many  of  the  more  devout,  whose  minds  in- 
cline constantly  to  sacred  things,  regard  it  as  a  holy  city, 


348  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

particularly  as  Siberia's  patron  saint  lies  buried  there. 
The  climate  is  said  to  be  very  fine,  except  in  the  fall,  when 
heavy  fogs  prevail  that  are  infinitely  more  disagreeable  than 
the  rainy  season  in  San  Francisco,  which  is  saying  a  great 
deal.  My  experience  may  be  exceptional,  but  it  has  always 
happened  that  in  visiting  a  strange  country  I  invariably 
arrive  just  in  the  very  worst  season, — or  at  least  the  na- 
tives tell  me  so.  But  I  have  suspected,  many  times,  that 
these  assurances  of  exceptional  weather  proceeded  from 
local  prejudice,  or  the  common  love  for  home  place. 
Any  how,  I  struck  Irkoutskin  a  bad  spell,  for  it  was  not 
only  snowing  with  great  violence  but  there  was  a  fearful 
wind  blowing  which  seemed  to  gather  up  big  drifts  of 
snow  for  the  sole  purpose  of  dashing  them  into  people's 
eyes.  This  wretched  blizzard  put  a  temporary  stop  to 
horse  racing,  but  during  the  night  there  occurred  a  great 
change  for  the  better,  the  wind  ceased  entirely,  and  when 
morning  broke  Aurora  burst  upon  a  beautiful  scene.  At 
breakfast  every  one  present  was  talking  about  the  races, 
and  when  I  went  out  upon  the  street  nothing  else  seemed 
to  be  thought  of.  In  fact  I  soon  learned  that  horse  rac- 
ing at  Irkoutsk  served  the  same  purpose  there  that  pool- 
rooms and  market  quotations  in  exchanges  and  bucket- 
shops  do  in  this  country — they  are  the  popular  resources 
of  speculators. 

I  drove  out  about  noon  with  my  guide  to  the  race- 
course, which,  was  a  mile  track  situated  some  distance  out 
of  the  city  proper,  and  only  partly  enclosed  by  a  very 
low  fence.  On  that  side  the  track  next  to  the  town  there 
was  a  pavillion,  in  which  the  Governor,  judges,  and  a  few 
other  privileged  persons  stood — seats  were  nowhere  pro- 
vided— and  conducted  the  racing.  I  was  amused  to  wit- 
ness the  preparations,  as  they  are  so  unlike  the  prelimi- 
naries made  by  jockeys  in  other  countries.  The  training 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


349 


to  which  horses  entered  for  racing  are  subjected  appears 
very  harsh,  if  not  inhumanly  cruel,  and  generally  lasts 


for  three  weeks.     This  training   consists  in   riding   the 
horses  for  several  hours  each  day  at  their  greatest  speed  and 


350 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


until  they  are  covered  with  foam  ;  they  are  then  tied  out  in 
an  open  field  over  night,  under  a  sharp  frost,  so  that  the 
perspiration  may  freeze  in  a  white  coat  over  their  bodies  ; 
the  Siberians  declare  thai  this  treatment  (which  Avould 
kill  nearly  any  ordinary  horse)  hardens  the  muscles  and 
at  the  same  time  makes  the  horse  more  supple.  In  addi- 
tion to  this  they  will  not  allow  their  horses  a  drop  of  wa- 
ter for  forty-eight  hours  preceding  the  race,  their  theory 
being  that  water  distends  the  animal's  stomach  and  proves 
a  serious  impediment  to  its  speed.  Horses  used  in  the 
races  are  not  ridden,  but  driven  to  a  sledge,  to  which  two 
animals  are  attached,  but  in  reality  only  one  does  all  the 
pulling,  the  other  being  used  only  to  encourage  the  draught 
horse.  All  Siberian  horses  have  enormous  manes  and 
tails,  the  former  reaching  to  their  knees  and  the  latter 
often  dragging  a  foot  or  more  on  the  ground  ;  but  that 
this  profuse  growth  may  not  interfere  with  the  running, 
the  tail  and  mane  are  tied  up  in  leather  straps  which  im- 
part a  rather  grotesque  appearance  to  the  horses. 

After  witnessing  several  races  I  returned  to  the  city 
and  paid  a  visit  to  the  prisons,  which  are  located  on  a  level 
strip  of  ground  on  the  opposite  shore  of  the  Irkut  River, 
a  small  stream  which  bounds  one  side  of  Irkoutsk.  I  was 
chagrined,  however,  on  applying  for  admission  to  the 
prison  to  meet  with  a  flat  refusal,  and  though  I  produced 
my  letter  from  the  St.  Petersburg  ministry  request  ing  that 
every  facility  be  afforded  me  in  my  investigations,  the 
officer  was  none  the  less  obstinate,  but  before  leaving  he 
told  me  I  would  be  admitted  on  the  following  day.  I 
was  therefore  compelled  to  return  and  await  his  disposi- 
tion, which  leisure  interval  I  improved  by  returning  to 
Irkoutsk  to  gather  such  stray  facts  as  might  offer. 
Through  rare  fortune  I  fell  in  with  an  exile  who  had 
served  several  years  in  the  mines  at  Kara,  under  a  hard 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


351 


labor  sentence,  but  through  the  influence  of  friends  at 
St.  Petersburg  hud  the  remainder  of  his  sentence  commu- 
ted to  simple  exile  in  the  Irkoutsk  Government.  Through 


Schleuter  I  obtained  from  this  unfortunate  man  a  thor- 
ough and  undeniably  truthful  statement  of  the  treatment 
accorded  to  convicts  at  the  Kara  mines,  and^I  present  it 
here  with  the  full  assurance  that  it  is  not  in  the  least  ex- 


352  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

aggerated,  for  Schleuter  himself  had  many  ways  of  ver- 
ifying and  attesting  all  the  facts. 

His  statements  to  me,  made  in  the  course  of  several 
hours  of  conversation,  embrace  the  following  interesting 
facts : 

The  mines  at  Kara  are  noted  throughout  all  Eussia 
for  the  atrocious  treatment  dealt  out  to  convicts  who 
may  be  sent  there.  A  large  majority  of  the  Siberian 
gold  mines  are  no  longer  worked  by  convict  labor,  hav- 
ing passed  into  the  hands  of  private  capitalists,  but  that 
at  Kara  is  one  of  those  still  operated  by  Government 
authority  with  convicts  who  are  sentenced  to  hard  labor. 
Both  gold  and  silver  are  found  at  Kara,  but  mining 
for  the  former  is  so  much  more  profitable  that  the 
little  silver  gathered  is  from  double  running  in  reducing 
the  gold-bearing  quartz. 

Generally,  the  number  of  miners  at  Kara  are  from 
300  to  500,  and  their  daily  labor  is  from  13  to  15  hours 
according  to  the  favor  which  they  may  find  in  the  officers' 
eyes.  In  1857  there  was  a  law  passed  in  Eussia, 
which  may  be  found  in  Article  569,  providing  for  the 
punishment  of  convicts.  According  to  this  law  all  those 
sentenced  to  hard  labor  must  wear  heavy  irons  on  their 
wrists  and  ankles  for  the  period  of  two  years,  which  is 
called  the  probation  sentence  ;  if,  at  the  end  of  two 
years,  the  convict  is  reported  as  having  conducted  himself 
in  a  humble,  contrite  and  thoroughly  acceptable  manner 
to  the  officer  in  whose  charge  the  exile  may  be,  then  this 
first  sentence  is  considered  served,  and  he  begins  on  the 
second  part  of  his  sentence,  which  is  apportioned  as  fol- 
lows :  Those  condemned  for  life  must  wear  the  heaviest 
shackles  for  a  period  of  eight  years  (additional  to  the 
probation  sentence)  ;  those  condemned  for  twenty  years 
wear  the  shackles  six  years  ;  for  fifteen  years,  they  weav 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  353 

them  four  years  ;  for  twelve  years,  they  wear  them  three 
years  ;  for  eight  years,  they  wear  them  two  years  ;  for 
six  years,  they  wear  them  eighteen  months ;  and  for 
four  years,  twelve  months.  So  that  in  any  event  a  hard 
labor  exile  must  wear  the  most  galling  fetters  upon  his 
hands  and  ankles  for  a  period  of  not  less  than  three 
years.  But  this  law,  harsh,  nay  inhuman  in  all  its  phases, 
does  not  disclose  all  the  heinousness  of  its  application  by 
officials  in  Siberia  entrusted  with  its  administration, 
for  since  ignorant  and  more  brutal  guards  are  made 
the  censors  of  each  exile's  conduct,  it  is  in  their  power 
to  indefinitely  extend  the  probationary  period  and 
keep  a  poor  sufferer  in  chains  so  long  as  the  guard's 
own  pleasure  may  dictate.  That  this  is  the  construction 
put  upon  the  law  by  many  Governors  of  penal  colonies 
cannot  be  disputed  in  the  face  of  a  thousand  living  wit- 
nesses now  slowly  dying  from  torture  and  exposure  in 
the  eastern  mines  where  it  is  applied. 

In  justice  to  Russia  it  must  be  said,  however,  that  the 
crimes  thus  committed  against  humanity  are  only  indi- 
rectly chargable  to  the  Government ;  some  discretionary 
powers  must  be  accorded  Governors  of  penal  districts 
lying  so  remote  from  the  chief  administration  ;  that  this 
necessary  power  should  sometimes  be  abused  is  so  natu- 
ral that  the  result  is  identical  in  all  countries,  being  co-ex- 
tensive with  the  good  and  bad  qualities  of  human  nature. 
Not  a  few  instances  have  occurred  where  Governors  with 
brutal  tendencies  have  been  recalled  to  St.  Petersburg 
and  upon  the  establishment  of  charges  preferred  against 
them  for  cruelty,  they  have  suffered  the  penalty  of  a, 
stern  and  exacting  law. 

Another  erroneous  impression  prevails  very  generally, 
but  which  has  not  the  slightest  foundation  in  fact,  viz. : 
that  exiles  are  compelled  to  labor  in  quick-silver  mines 


354  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

until  their  hair  falls  out  and  the  flesh  drops  away  from  their 
bones.  This  error  is  inexcusable,  because  there  is  no 
such  thing  as  a  quick-silver  mine  in  all  Siberia  ;  and  yet 
the  Government  has  been  time  and  again  charged  (by 
those  who  must  know  that  they  are  falsify  ing  facts)  with 
forcing  thousands  of  men  and  women  down  into  these 
caverns  of  insidious  death  each  year.  The  truth  con- 
cerning convict  labor  in  the  mines  is  dreadful  enough, 
without  any  exaggeration  or  misrepresentation. 

For  many  years  the  mining  at  Kara  was  conducted 
above  ground,  but  as  the  placers  became  exhausted  tun- 
nels were  sunk  which  resulted  in  the  finding  of  much 
richer  gold-bearing  ore  than  the  placers  yielded.  This 
discovery,  though  highly  beneficial  to  the  Government, 
proved  disastrous  to  those  whose  enforced  labor  had  un- 
covered the  new  auriferous  deposits.  Men  who  before 
were  compelled  to  work  fifteen  hours  each  day  with  task- 
masters over  them,  had,  at  least,  the  blessed  sun-light  to 
kiss  their  heads  like  sympathetic  ministrations  from 
heaven ;  they  could  hear,  in  summer  time,  the  cheerful 
songs  of  many  birds,  and  in  winter  there  were  great  fields 
of  snow  laughing  under  the  inconstant  sun,  or  grown  so 
bleak  that  all  nature  appeared  to  share  the  convicts'  hard- 
ships. It  is  astonishing  what  inconsiderable  circumstan- 
ces serve  to  console  one  when  doomed  to  the  never  pity- 
ing injustice  of  those  appointed  to  watch  over  and  pun- 
ish hard-labor  exiles.  To  many  of  the  superstitious 
unfortunates  there  is  luck  in  having  a  bird  perch  on  a 
branch  above  them  ;  good  news  is  expected  to  follow  the 
song  of  a  bird  after  sunset,  and  should  a  bird  light  upon 
the  shovel  or  barrow  of  a  convict  it  presages  to  the  one 
who  handles  the  implement,  news  from  home  promis- 
ing his  speedy  release.  So  are  the  moonbeams  considered 
as  harbingers  of  fate  ;  if  a  convict  be  wakened  at  night 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA*  355 

by  the  moon  shining  in  his  face,  he  regards  it  as  an  omen 
of  fortune  :  that  he  will  hear  from  home,  be  transferred 
to  more  comfortable  quarters,  or  in  some  other  way  be- 
come the  legatee  of  good  luck. 

All  ambitions,  hopes,  and  agreeable  superstitions  are 
suppressed  in  the  heart  of  every  exile  when  he  is  forced 
to  labor  underground  ;  it  is  to  them  a  departure  from  the 
earth  into  the  abodes  of  evil  spirits  where  mercy  is  un- 
known. In  consequence  of  this  very  prevalent  belief 
among  exiles  they  suffer  in  mind  more  perhaps  than  phy- 
sically, from  the  extreme  punishment  which  is  really 
inflicted  upon  them. 

In  Kara,  my  informant  assured  me,  as  described  on 
page  229  of  a  work  entitled  "  The  Russians  of  To-Day," 
"there  are  scores  who  never  see  the  light  of  day,  but 
work  and  sleep  all  the  year  round  in  the  depths  of  the  earth, 
extracting  silver  under  the  eyes  of  task-masters,  who 
have  orders  not  to  spare  them.  Iron  gates  guarded  by 
sentries  close  the  lodes,  or  streets,  at  the  bottom  of  the 
shafts,  and  miners  are  railed  off  from  one  another  in 
gangs  of  twenty.  They  sleep  within  recesses  hewn  out 
of  the  rock — very  kennels — into  which  they  must  creep 
on  all  fours."  Nearly  all  these  prisoners  are  constantly 
loaded  with  chains,  while  each  has  a  daily  task  to  perform, 
or  come  under  the  terrible  discipline  of  the  knout,  plete, 
or  scorpion. 

Nearly  all  the  convicts  at  Kara  are  political  offenders, 
against  whom  there  is  such  prejudice  among  Government 
officials  that  they  are  tortured  to  the  limit  of  cruel  inge- 
nuity ;  it  is  not  one  in  twenty  that  can  survive  the 
cruelties  inflicted  here  without  becoming  hopelessly  in- 
sane. There  is  a  prison-hospital  established  at  Kara  in 
which  none  are  cared  for  except  those  who  receive  cor- 
poral punishment  from  the  officers.  So  inhumanly  se- 


>  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

vere  is  this  administration  of  injustice  that  after  its 
application  the  poor  victim  is  little  more  than  a  piece  of 
bleeding,  unconscious  flesh ;  from  the  room  of  punish- 
ment he  is  carried  to  a  ward,  provided  with  small  cots,  at 
the  foot  of  which  is  written  the  word  "  Costegcetis," 
meaning,  "  an  offender  well  birched."  But  though  it  is 
called  a  hospital,  the  treatment  is  little  calculated  to  im- 
prove the  patients'  condition,  they  being  literally  left  to 
help  themselves,  the  policy  being  that  a  dead  convict  is 
better  than  a  live  one.  This  ward  exceeds  in  terror  any 
portions  of  an  insane  asylum  ;  the  poor  sufferers  are  either 
dumb  from  unconsciousness,  or  raving  with  delirium  ; 
some  are  lying  like  sheeted  ghosts,  their  eyes  half-closed, 
and  one  might  suppose  them  dead  but  for  their  deep  and 
sonorous  respiration,  indicative  of  approaching  dissolution  ; 
others  are  talking  in  a  wild  and  incoherent  manner  of 
their  wrongs  ;  or  perhaps  picturing  the  loved  face  of 
some  friend  or  relative  back  in  Russia  to  whom  they  talk 
in  terms  of  rare  affection  ;  others  yet  are  storming  with 
a  passion  directed  by  a  mind  from  which  reason  has  fled  ; 
while  lastly,  on  this  or  that  dirty  cot  is  a  body  purple, 
distorted,  with  blearing  but  vacant  eyes,  the  very  image 
of  powerful  agony,  the  hands  clenched  and  stiff,  happily 
— dead.  The  poor  wretches,  not  a  few  of  whom  have 
been  delicately  nurtured,  and  whose  crimes  are  opposi- 
tion to  a  Government  which  they  regard  as  oppressive, 
never  receive  one  word  of  sympathy,  nor  are  their  most 
imperative  needs  attended  to.  Those  whose  brutality 
can  punish  so  severely  are  not  the  persons  whom  we 
might  expect  would  give  a  morsel  of  compassion  to  their 
victims. 

At  Kara  an  instrument  is  used  to  punish  convicts 
which  differs  from  any  others  in  use,  so  far  as  the  knowl- 
edge of  my  informant  extended.  He  described  it  as 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  357 

three  large  pieces  of  raw  hide,  each  three  feet  long,  with 
knots  on  the  end  like  on  knouts  ;  these  three  thongs  are 
plaited  together  at  one  end  so  as  to  make  a  handle,  while 
the  other  ends  are  loose.  A  castigation  with  this  instru- 
ment is  next  to  an  application  of  the  scorpion .  The  sev- 
eral modes  of  punishment  practiced  at  Kara  are  :  whipping 
with  the  knout,  plete,  and  the  instrument  just  described, 
and  sometimes,  though  rarely,  with  the  scorpion  ;  the  con- 
victs are  also  disciplined  by  being  shut  up  in  dungeons, 
by  slow  starvation,  increasing  their  irons,  placing  them  in 
beds  of  freezing  water,  and  such  other  tortures  as  the 
ingenuity  of  vicious  officers  may  suggest. 

But  in  addition  to  these  cruelties,  all  prisoners  brought 
to  the  Kara  mines  for  hard  labor  are  branded  on  the 
forehead  and  cheeks  with  three  letters,  K  A  T,  which  is 
an  abreviation  of  Katarjnik,  meaning  a  hard  labor  con- 
vict. The  instrument  used  for  this  purpose  is  shaped 
like  a  cup,  the  larger  end  being  provided  with  needles  set 
so  as  to  pierce  the  skin  to  a  depth  of  about  one-sixteenth 
of  an  inch  in  the  shape  of  the  three  letters.  The  convict 
is  bound  to  an  upright  post  in  an  immovable  position,  and 
then  the  instrument  is  applied  to  the  forehead  and  each 
cheek,  after  which  a  caustic  liquid  is  rubbed  briskly  on 
the  fresh  wounds.  This  produces  the  most  intense  pain, 
which  does  not  abate  for  several  days,  as  the  liquid  aggra- 
vates the  wounds  and  generally  causes  them  to  suppurate. 
When,  after  weeks,  the  brand  is  healed,  conspicuous  scars 
are  left  which  endure  for  life  ;  thus  a  man  who  receives 
this  stigma,  however  undeserved  it  may  be,  is  doomed 
to  parade  his  disgrace  to  all  the  world.  My  informant 
showed  me  the  brands  he  had  received,  which  resembled 
large  and  angry  ring-worms  that  had  assumed  lettered 
shapes. 

The  female  convicts  at  Kara  receive  much  more  con- 
23 


358  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

siderate  treatment  than  the  men  ;  they  are  not  compelled 
to  labor  in  the  mines,  but  are  closely  confined  in  iron 
cells  at  night  and  made  to  perform  menial  chores,  and 
are  in  servitude  to  the  officers  during  the  day  time. 
Nearly  all  those  who  are  there  confined  are  under  sen- 
tence for  murdering  their  husbands,  a  crime  o£  great 
frequency  in  Rus  sia  where  wives  receive  little  '/,'ner  treat- 
ment than  blows.  Indeed,  under  the  e^riier  laws 
of  the  Russian  Church  it  was  a  portion  of  the  pre- 
scribed ceremony  of  marriage  for  the  groc'.p,  to  carry 
with  him  to  the  altar  a  small  whip,  which  he  lay  lightly 
upon  the  bride's  back  as  a  token  that  she  should  be  sub- 
ject to  all  his  wishes  or  caprices.  During  the  prevalence 
of  this  strange  nuptial  rite  there  was  a  law  in  Russia 
which  punished  wives  who  murdered  their  husbands  by 
burying  them  alive  up  to  their  necks,  and  then  turning 
dogs  loose  to  feed  on  the  exposed  heads. 

My  informant  said  that  the  danger  incurred  in  at- 
tempts to  escape  was  so  great  that  comparatively  few 
convicts,  even  if  they  had  an  opportunity,  would  take 
the  risk.  They  would  not  only  subject  themselves  to 
penalties  provided  by  a  law  which  was  construed  by  inhu- 
man officials,  but  would  have  to  run  the  risk  of  starva- 
tion, and  also  the  chance  of  being  shot  by  some  of  the 
Siberian  tribes  who  hunt  convicts  as  they  would  wild 
beasts,  shooting  them  down  in  order  to  rob  them  of  their 
clothes. 

I  was  greatly  interested  in  the  exile's  relation  of  how 
convicts  are  treated  at  Kara  ;  the  fellow  was  well  educated 
for  a  Russian  peasant,  and  he  did  not  appear  to  have  any 
particular  prejudices  against  the  Government.  He  had 
served  fifteen  years  at  Kara  for  having,  with  several  stu- 
dents at  Kasan,  incited  a  political  disturbance  in  which 
threats  of  assassination  had  been  freely  expressed.  His 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  359 

sentence  was  twenty  years  at  hard  labor,  but,  through 
the  influence  of  friends  at  home,  after  serving  three- 
fourths  of  his  time  the  remainder  of  his  sentence  was  com- 
muted to  simple  exile  in  the  Irkoutsk  district ;  he  was  there- 
fore free  to  go  whither  he  willed  inside  the  territory,  and 
might  have  engaged  in  business,  but  I  believe  he  was 
doing  nothing  except  a  little  hunting  and  fishing. 

On  the  following  day  I  again  applied  for  admission 
to  the  Irkoutsk  prisons,  but  my  success  was  not  much 
better  than  before  ;  in  fact,  so  unsatisfactory  that  no 
description  of  the  prisons  or  treatment  accorded  the 
convicts  could  be  obtained  except  from  persons  in  no 
wise  connected  with  the  management,  so  I  was  compelled 
to  return  to  Irkoutsk  and  conduct  my  investigations 
through  such  sources  as  were  afforded,  but  these  I 
soon  found  quite  sufficient.  The  suspicion  may  have 
been  already  excited  that  such  information  as  I  have  given 
is  hardly  worthy  full  credence  because  of  having  been  re- 
ceived from  exiles  whose  prejudices  might  lead  them  into 
great  exaggerations.  Before  proceeding  further  I  hope 
to  relieve  this  impression  by  saying,  that  I  had  opportu- 
nities for  verifying,  in  a  general  way,  all  the  stories  I  re- 
ceived from  exiles  ;  interviewing  more  than  a  dozen  who 
had  served  long  periods  in  the  mines,  I  would  have  been 
liable  to  dotect  any  misstatement,  especially  since  I  did 
not  talk  with  more  than  one  exile  at  a  time.  In  all  their 
several  statements  not  the  least  inconsistency  appeared, 
while  each  declaration  was  further  confirmed  to  me  by 
business  men  in  the  various  towns  I  visited  in  Siberia.  I 
did  not  attempt  to  interview  any  prison  official,  because 
Mr.  Lansdell's  example  was  before  me  ;  that  they  would 
protect  themselves  by  hiding  behind  a  mountain  of  misrep- 
resentations and  denials  is  perfectly  natural,  notwithstand- 
ing their  statements  are  made  in  the  very  face  of  established 


360  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

facts.  I  saw  with  my  own  eyes  quite  enough  of  the  hor- 
rible treatment  of  Siberian  exiles  to  make  me  regard 
nearly  any  story  of  torture  inflicted  on  Russian  convicts 
appear  as  not  improbable,  but  I  have  not  the  least  dispo- 
sition to  spread  the  terrible  tales  of  exile  suffering  which 
have  grown,  by  the  accretions  of  repetition,  to  monstrous 
proportions.  My  desire  is  to  tell  nothing  but  the  truth, 
and  to  this  end  I  have  not  and  will  not  repeat  any  state- 
ment that  I  have  not  sifted  and  found  to  rest  upon  the 
very  strongest  circumstantial  evidence. 


CHAPTEE  XX. 

IRKOUTSK  is  so  situated  that  it  is  an  excellent  point 
from  whence  to  gather  information  respecting  the  natives 
of  Siberia,  particularly  as  a  majority  of  these  tribes  in- 
habit the  northern  section  and  make  that  city  their  cen- 
tral trading  station.  It  is  said  there  are  thirty  different 
tribes  in  all  Siberia,  among  the  more  prominent  being  Tar- 
tars, Ostjaks,  Samoy eds, Kirghiz,  Jacuts,  Goldi,Buriats, 
Zyrians,  Koriaks,  Tchapogirs,  Jukagires,  Yogules,  Kam- 
tchadals,  Coreans,  Yakoutes,  Gilyaks,  Chukchees  and 
Tunguse. 

The  Ostjaks,  of  whom  I  have  already  written,  have 
some  claim  to  be  considered  as  the  aboriginal  inhabitants 
of  Siberia,  occupying  the  north-western  region.  They 
are  principally  found  in  rude  settlements  scattered  along 
the  banks  of  the  Ob  or  Obi,  as  far  north  as  Tobolsk. 
Their  chief  occupations  are  fishing  and  hunting.  The 
former  yields  them  abundant  means  of  subsistence,  as 
the  rivers  teem  with  fish  ;  and  hunting  supplies  them 
with  valuable  furs  for  barter.  Some  of  the  Ostjaks  lead 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


361 


a  kind  of  pastoral  life,  and  keep  large  herds  of  rein- 
deer, which  furnish  them  with  both  food  and  Clothing. 
In  summer  they  live  in  wretched  temporary  huts,  framed 
of  boughs  and  covered  with  birch  bark.  Their  filthy 
bodies  are  but  scantily  clad.  Small  in  stature,  lean  and 
lank,  with  a  scared,  hang-dog  look,  and  a  stupid  expression 
on  their  broad  ugly  faces,  they  seem  a  degraded  race.  It 
is  true  that  on  the  water  they  show  to  better  advantage 
in  their  light  skiffs  or  canoes,  which  they  manage  with 


OSTJAKS  IN  WINTER  DRESS. 

wonderful  dexterity.  But  the  Ostjak  is  only  seen  at  his 
best  in  winter,  and  in  that  far  north  which  is  his  home. 
There  he  leads  the  primitive  life  for  which  he  is  best 
suited ;  and  there,  warmly  clad  in  the  skin  of  the  rein- 
deer, while  swiftly  gliding  on  his  snow-shoes  in  pursuit  of 
game,  or  bounding  along  in  the  "narta,"  the  sledge 
drawn  by  dogs  or  deer,  he  may  feel  himself  the  true  lord 
of  the  snowy  wilderness  that  stretches  to  the  Arctic 
Ocean.  The  winter  habitations  of  the  Ostjaks  are  rude 


362 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


dwellings,  built  of  logs,  with  an  opening  at  the  top  for 
the  smoke.  The  light  is  admitted  by  means  of  a  rough 
but  ingenious  contrivance.  An  aperture  made  in  the  hut 
is  fitted  with  a  large  block  of  ice,  which  serves  as  a 
window,  and  is  renewed  at  will  when  it  thaws.  The 
dress  worn  by  the  Ostjaks  is  of  reindeer  skins.  It  con- 
sists of,  first,  a  fur  coat,  which  is  seamless,  and  is  slip- 
ped on  over  the  head  and  reaches  to  the  knee ;  next, 
drawers  of  the  same  material,  fastening  round  the  body  ; 


SAMOYED  FROM  THE  LOWER  YENISEI. 


FEMALE  SAMOYEU. 


lastly,  fur  boots,  with  the  hair  turned  inside.  Over  this 
dress  is  worn  another,  of  which  the  various  parts  are  the 
same,  only  that  the  skins  are  those  of  the  old  reindeer, 
the  hair  of  which  is  thicker  and  longer. 

O 

Beyond  the  Arctic  Circle,  near  the  Kara  Sea,  and  along 
the  estuaries  of  the  Ob  and  the  Yenisei,  dwell  the  Sam- 
oyeds,  who  in  many  points  resemble  the  Ostjuks.  They, 
too,  lead  a  kind  of  nomadic  life,  roaming  about  in  quest 
of  pastures  for  their  reindeer,  of  which  they  possess 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  363 

large  herds.  They  are  more  inclined  to  the  chase  than 
to  fishing.  Keen  and  bold  hunters,  they  do  not  even 
shrink  from  encountering,  single-handed,  the  huge  polar 
bear,  with  no  other  weapon  than  the  bow,  or  a  knife  fas- 
tened to  a  pole.  They  bring  to  market,  at  Obdorsk,  on 
the  Ob  and  Yeniseisk,  the  choicest  furs  ;  among  the  rest, 
a  peculiar  variety  of  wolfskin,' much  prized  by  the  na- 
tives. The  Samoyeds  are  tall  and  slender,  but  the  women 
small.  The  dress  of  the  latter  is  far  more  elegant  than 
that  of  their  Ostjak  neighbors.  It  is  not  made  of  deer- 
skins, but  of  the  different  furs,  carefully  selected  with 
a  view  to  effect. 

The  Kirghiz  Tartars  are  more  southernly  in  their  habi- 
tations, and  besides  being  warlike  in  disposition  are  fre- 
quently highwaymen,  who  have  time  and  again  been  the 
terror  of  Siberian  travel.  They  are  chiefly  engaged  rais- 
ing horses  and  cattle,  but  though  they  pursue  this  voca- 
tion generally  with  profit  they  cannot  resist  the  prompt- 
ings of  a  nature  inherited  from  generation  to  generation, 
and  therefore  forage,  pillage,  rob,  with  that  same  relish 
exhibited  by  their  Tartar  ancestors  many  hundred  years 
ago.  Even  within  the  last  few  years  they  have  been 
guilty  of  many  abductions,  which  is  a  revival  of  their 
earlier  practices.  Like  the  Albanians  who,  during  the 
controversy  with  Montenegro  in  1877,  made  descents 
upon  unprotected  villages  near  the  border  and  carried  off 
the  most  attractive  female  Montenegrins,  so  the  Kirghiz 
have  recently  despoiled  their  Thibetan  neighbors  and 
made  captive  many  women,  carrying  them  off  to  their 
ranches  and  subjecting  them  to  servitude. 

The  Buriats  inhabit  a  district  in  the  Trans-Baikal — that 
is,  beyond  Lake  Baikal.  They  are  not  very  numerous, 
but  not  a  few  possess  considerable  wealth  and  dress  in  a 
style  which,  if  not  exactly  magnificently  fashionable,  is 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  365 

very  expensive.  Many  of  them  live  in  Yakoutsk,  Chita 
and  olhi-r  f.:r  eastern  cities,  where  the  females  wear  dresses 
and  jewelry  of  great  value  ;  but  those  leading  a  pastoral 
life  live  in  tents  like  most  of  our  western  Indians. 

The  Goldi  are  a  small  tribe,  numbering  about  5,000, 
located  along  the  Amoor  river,  which  is  the  dividing  line 
between  Siberia  and  China,  and  in  the  Ussuri  district. 
They  are  nearly  allied  to  the  Tunguse  in  habits  and  lan- 
guage, but  being  on  the  Chinese  border  and  mixing  with 
the  Manchu,  they  imitate  them  in  many  particulars. 
Formerly  the  Goldi  did  not  bury  their  dead,  but  carried 
them  to  a  dead  house  where  the  bodies  were  left  until 
destroyed  by  time.  Notwithstanding  the  dreadful  exha- 
lations of  this  charnal  house  friends  of  the  departed  paid 
frequent  visits  to  the  building  to  mourn  and  pray  for 
their  dead. 

The  Gilyaks  are  a  tribe  whose  numbers  I  found  no 
one  could  approximate.  They  inhabit  a  portion  of 
the  Island  Sakhalein,  and  also  a  district  adjoining  that 
occupied  by  the  Goldi,  but  there  is  so  great  a  difference 
between  them  that  no  one  single  feature,  in  either  habit 
or  appearance,  is  common  to  them  both.  The  Gilyaks 
have  so  great  an  aversion  for  water  that  they  never  learn 
to  swim  or  wash  themselves.  Their  subsistence  is  de- 
rived from  fishing  and  hunting,  fish  being  taken  by  nets, 
and  sometimes  by  spearing.  They  are  polygamists,  es- 
teeming women  of  no  more  value  than  their  dogs,  but 
polyandry  is  also  practiced  ;  in  case  where  a  woman  has 
a  patrimony  of  fair  estimation,  so  many  sledge-dogs,  so 
much  brandy,  or  so  many  valuable  skins,  she  can  buy  as 
many  husbands  as  her  means  will  afford  ;  but  polyandry 
is  seldom  practiced  among  them,  while  polygamy  is  very 
general.  They  are  the  most  ignorant  people  to  be  found 
in  Siberia,  and  in  many  respects  are  like  the  Congo  tribes 


366 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


in  Central  Africa.  Sickness  among  them  is  treated  by 
wearing  amulets,  and  such  fatalists  are  they  that  on  no  ac- 
count would  one  Gilyak  attempt  to  save  another's  life. 


These  people,  though  ignorant  almost  beyond  belief, 
are  uncommonly  brave,  and  while  they  have  many  super- 
stitions, there  is  little  connected  with  their  faith  that  in- 
spires terror.  They  prefer  hunting  to  any  other  employ- 
ment, but  still  use  only  primitive  weapons  for  taking 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


ar,7 


game ;  yet  there  is  a  superstition  which  prevents  them 
from  hunting  the  tiger  or  wolf.  In  Western  Siberia 
and  Eastern  Russia  the  peasants  will  not  kill  a  wolf  be- 
cause, as  it  was  explained  to  me,  "  the  surviving  compan- 
ions or  friends  of  a  wolf  will  avenge  the  dead  one." 


GOLDI  IN  WINTER  DRESS. 

Many  told  me  that  if  a  peasant  refused  to  kill  a  wolf  his 
flocks  would  never  be  molested,  but  if  he  did  do  so  the 
wolves  would  be  sure  to  destroy  his  stock. 

Bear  hunting  among  the  Gilyaks  is  most  exciting  sport, 


368 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


because  it  is  conducted  something  after  the  fashion  once 
practiced  by  ancient  Norwegians.  Their  weapon  consists 
of  a  long  pole,  to  one  end  of  which  is  attached,  by  means 
of  small  strips  of  raw-hide,  a  steel  spear  four  inches  long 
and  two  inches  broad  ;  there  is  also  another  weapon  used, 
but  not  so  commonly  as  the  former,  which  is  made  by 
wrapping  several  sharp-pointed  spikes  together  so  that  their 
points  will  extend  outward  something  like  the  bristles  of  a 
hedge-hog  when  rolled  up  ;  this  chevaux-de-frize  is  firmly 
fastened  to  a  long  pole,  which  is  then  used  like  the  spear. 
This  latter  weapon  is  employed  to  worry  the  bear  by  first 


GROUP  OF  GILYAKS. 


i.Titatiiigthe  animal  until,  enraged,  it  rushes  upon  its  as- 
sailant ;  the  Gilyak  hunter  then  defends  himself  by  pre- 
senting his  spiked  weapon,  which  the  bear  seizes  only  to 
wound  itself  ;  more  violently  enraged  with  these  self-in- 
Ilicted  injuries,  the  bear  endeavors  to  destroy  the  spikes 
by  biting  and  squeezing  them,  until  it  actually  kills  itself . 
In  using  the  spear  there  is  really  more  danger  incurred 
than  from  the  spiked  weapon,  for  when  a  bear  is  wounded 
with  a  spear  it  attacks  the  hunter,  who  sometimes  be- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  3(39 

comes  the  victim.  Nothing  can  equal,  for  ferocity  and 
vitality,  the  Grizzly  bear  of  North  America,  but  next  to 
this  animal  certainly  comes  the  Russian  bear,  which  is 
equal  in  all  respects  to  the  Grizzly,  except  in  vital  pow- 
ers. Yet  terrible  as  it  is  when  fully  aroused,  the  Gil- 
yaks  not  only  attack  and  slay,  with  no  other  weapon  than 
a  long  spear,  the  most  powerful  Russian  bears,  but  they 
also  capture  them  alive  to  provide  amusement  at  annual 
feasts.  To  capture  these  dangerous  animals  a  party  of 
eight  to  a  dozen  men  provide  themselves  with  lassoes, 
chains,  collars  and  a  muzzle,  and  in  company  seek  their 
game.  Upon  finding  a  bear,  however  large  it  may  be, 
they  proceed  to  take  it  prisoner  in  the  following  manner : 
Scattering  out  in  a  circle  they  surround  the  bear  and 
gradually  contract  the  circle  by  driving  the  animal  to- 
wards the  center,  always  taking  great  care  not  to  excite 
it.  Dogs  are  not  used  at  such  times,  because  they  would 
enrage  the  bear  and  cause  it  to  break  precipitately,  so 
that  a  capture  would  be  impossible.  When  the  circle 
becomes  sufficiently  contracted  everything  is  made  ready 
for  two  men  to  cast  ther  lassoes,  and  while  the  attention 
of  the  bear  is  directed  towards  one  or  more  persons,  an- 
other of  the  party  nimbly  leaps  upon  the  bear's  back,  as 
the  lassoes  are  thrown,  and  catching  bruin  by  the  ears 
hold  his  head,  assisted  by  others  with  the  lassoes  ;  a  col- 
lar and  muzzle  are  next  adjusted  on  poor  bruin,  and  he 
then  becomes  a  helpless  captive.  Should  any  of  the 
hunters  be  wounded  in  these  dangerous  attempts,  which 
they  very  frequently  are,  they  think  themselves  lucky, 
as  such  wounds  are  considered  evidences  of  prowess,  and 
to  be  killed  by  a  bear«is  esteemed  a  happy  death. 

Bears  thus  caught  are  taken  to  the  nearest  village, 
where  they  are  kept  and  fatted  on  fish,  for  the  approach- 
ing festival .  The  most  important  fete  day  among  these 


370 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


FESTIVAL  OF  KILLING  THE  BEAR. 
1.  Gilyaks  of  the  Upper  Class,  and  Dog.    2.  Bear  Trap.    3.  Wolf  Trap*    4.  Fish  and  Tackle. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA  .  371 

strange  people  occurs  early  in  January,  but  on  no  partic- 
ular date,  as  the  Gilyaks  reckon  time  by  the  moon.  On 
this  occasion  the  captured  bear  is  taken  from  its  cage  and 
shackled  so  it  can  commit  no  harm,  is  dragged  or  driven 
all  around  the  village  and  halted  before  each  house, 
where  some  cabalistic  words  are  repeated,  supposed  to 
bring  good  luck.  ,  After  this  part  of  the  ceremony  is 
completed,  they  lead  the  animal  to  some  place  for  water, 
and  also  serve  it  with  a  platter  of  food  ;  should  the  bear 
take  both  water  and  food  the  sacrifice  is  postponed,  but 
owing  to  its  anger  it  always  refuses.  The  bear  is  now 
dragged  to  the  place  of  sacrifice,  where  it  is  made  fast 
between  two  posts  by  means  of  raw  hide  ropes  connected 
with  its  collar.  Then  succeed  orgies  not  unlike  those 
practiced  by  several  tribes  of  Indians  about  their  sacri- 
fices. The  bear  is  beaten  with  sticks  and  stones  in  order 
to  make  it  growl,  for  manifestations  of  pain  and  an- 
ger from  the  animal  are  taken  as  answers  to  the  entreaties 
of  those  engaged  in  the  sacrifice  for  good  luck.  When  at 
length  the  bear  becomes  exhausted,  the  honor  of  shoot- 
ing it  through  the  heart  with  an  arrow  is  accorded  to 
one  who  is  chosen  chief  of  the  ceremonies  for  that  day. 
After  its  death  the  bear's  head  and  paws  are  cut  off,  the 
former  being  presented  to  the  village  patriarch,  and  to 
which  prayers  are  offered  for  a  period  of  six  weeks.  The 
paws  are  divided  between  four  popular  persons  at  the 
feast,  who  keep  them  for  good  luck,  sometimes  wearing 
them  for  years  tied  to  a  string  about  the  neck.  In  pass- 
ing through  a  Gilyak  settlement  it  is  very  common  to 
find  the  ears,  jaw-bones,  skulls  and  paws  of  bears  killed 
in  such  sacrifices  as  I  have  described,  hung  up  in  trees, 
where  they  are  supposed  to  exercise  a  most  serviceable 
influence  in  keeping  off  evil  spirits  and  bringing  good 
luck  to  the  village. 


372 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


Iii  the  Island  Sakhalein  these  ceremonials  of  bear  kill- 
ing are  much  more  frequent  than  on  the  Siberian  shore, 
for  the  reason  perhaps  that  the  Gilyaks  are  more  nu- 


merous  on  Sakhalein  and  because  their  customs  are  not 
interfered  with  or  influenced  by  neighboring  tribes. 
The  Tunguse  are  a  very  numerous  people  inhabiting 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  373 

many  parts  of  Siberia.  They  are  very  much  like  the 
Manchu  of  China,  in  appearance,  while  in  habits  they 
assimilate  with  the  Esquimaux,  being  found  as  far  north 
as  the  Arctic  Ocean.  In  March  these  people  go  on  snow- 
shoes  over  snow,  into  which,  at  that  season,  cloven- 
footed  animals  sink,  and  shoot  elks,  roe,  and  musk  deer, 
wild  deer  and  goats  ;  the  tent  being  fixed  in  valleys  and 
defiles,  where  the  snow  lies  deepest.  In  April  the  ice  on 
the  rivers  begins  to  move,  and  the  huntsman,  now  turned 
fisher,  hastens  to  the  small  rivulets  to  net  his  fish. 
Those  not  required  for  immediate  use  are  dried  against 
the  next  month,  which  is  one  of  the  least  plentiful  in  the 
year.  In  May  they  shoot  deer  and  other  game,  which 
they  have  decoyed  to  certain  spots  by  burning  down  the 
high  grass  in  the  valleys,  so  that  the  young  sprouts  may 
attract  the  deer  and  goats.  June  supplies  the  hunter 
with  antlers  of  the  roe.  These  they  sell  at  a  high  price 
to  the  Chinese  for  medicinal  purposes.  In  July  the  na- 
tives spend  a  large  part  of  the  month  catching  fish,  taken 
with  nets  or  speared  with  harpoons.  They  are  able  also 
to  spear  the  elk,  which  likes  a  water-plant  growing  in  the 
lakes.  He  comes  down  at  night,  wades  into  the  water, 
and,  whilst  engaged  in  tearing  at  the  plant  with  his  teeth, 
is  killed  by  the  huntsman.  In  August  they  catch  birds, 
speared  at  night  in  the  retired  creeks  and  bays  of  the 
rivers  and  lakes.  Their  flesh,  except  that  of  the  swan,  is 
eaten,  and  the  down  is  exchanged  for  ear  and  finger 
rings,  bracelets,  beads,  and  the  like.  Thus  they  spend 
the  summer  months,  afterward  retiring  again  to  the 
mountains  for  game.  In  the  beginning  of  September  they 
prepare  for  winter  pursuits.  With  these  people  there  is 
very  little  of  civilization  found ;  they  live  in  birch-bark 
tents,  and  delight  in  hunting  on  the  tundras  ;  horses  are  not 


374  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

favorably  regarded  by  them,  their  domestic  draught  ani- 
mals being  reindeer  and  dogs ;  of  the  former  they  pos- 
sess immense  herds,  so  that  the  fortune  of  a  Tunguse  is 
estimated  entirely  by  the  number  of  reindeer  he  owns. 

The  Kirghiz,  who  are  distinct  from  the  Kirghiz  Tartars, 
are  the  largest  framed  people  in  Siberia.  Some  of  them 
own  large  herds  of  cattle  and  horses,  in  South  Siberia, 
and  have  some  pretensions  of  refinement,  living  in  wooden 
houses  and  adopting  a  few  customs  which  evidence  civili- 
zation ;  but  as  a  rule  they  are  beggarly,  indolent  rapscal- 
lions of  the  plains. 

They  are  met  with  in  nearly  all  the  larger  cities,  ply- 
ing their  tricks  of  juggling,  fortune  telling  and  begging  ; 
they  have  not  the  least  acquaintance  with  work  or  clean- 
liness, and  as  a  tribe  they  are  generally  despised. 

The  numerous  other  tribes  of  native  Siberians  are 
hardly  worthy  of  mention,  because  their  numbers  are 
very  small,  and  in  many  respects  they  are  so  nearly  as- 
similated to  the  principal  tribes  by  intermarriage  and 
nationality  that  only  an  ethnologist  can  distinguish  the 
tribal  Deculiarities  of  them  all. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

MY  journey  eastward  was  concluded  at  Irkoutsk,  which 
I  regarded  rightfully  as  the  central  point  of  Siberia,  at 
which  could  be  daily  met  people  of  all  ranks  from  every 
part  of  the  Empire.  I  was  pleased  to  find  that  my 
opinion  was  correct  and  that  here  was  afforded  full  and 
ample  means  of  collecting  all  the  facts  appertaining  to 
exile  and  commercial  life  in  that  portion  of  the  Empire. 
Situated  within  less  than  seventy  miles  of  lake  Baikal, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


375 


376 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


the  largest  fresh  water  body  on  the  eastern  hemisphere, 
on  which  ply  numerous  steamers  deriving  their  business 
chiefly  from  the  overland  travel  and  freightage,  and  being 
midway  on  the  great  transport  route,  the  city  could  not 
be  otherwise  than 


cosmopolitan  and 
important.  Its 
commercial  fea- 
tures exceed  those 
of  Irbit,  since  in 
1879  that  large  and 
finest  city  in  Siberia 
was  almost  totally 
destroyed  by  fire. 
At  all  seasons  may 
be  found  on  the 
streets  of  Irkoutsk 
and  in  its  hotels, 
representatives 
from  all  over  Eu- 
rope. A  great  deal 
of  gold  and  silver, 
in  fact  nearly  all 
the  native  product 
from  east  of  Tom- 
sk, is  taken  to  Ir- 
koutsk for  refine- 
ment and  coinage. 
Nearly  every  day 
gold  trains,  guarded  by  large  convoys,  or  bags  of  gold- 
dust  conveyed  by.  tarantass,  arrive  in  the  city,  while 
long  files  of  merchants  with  goods  from  China  or  Eussia 
pass  through  its  streets,  so  that  an  air  of  business  is  al- 
ways maintained. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  377 

On  the  second  day  of  my  stay  in  IrkoutskI  became  ac- 
quainted with  an  American  gentleman  who  was  engaged 
in  running  a  small  steamer  on  the  Amoor,  but  he  made  so 
many  trips  to  Irkoutsk  on  business  that  his  acquaintance 
with  prominent  people  of  the  city  was  quite  extensive. 
His  name  was  Robert  M.  Gunsollis,  and  his  native  place 
a  small  town  in  Robinson  county,  Kentucky.  He  was 
very  glad  to  see  me,  and  upon  disclosing  to  him  the  pur- 
poses of  my  visit  to  Siberia,  he  took  great  interest  in  as- 
sisting me.  Through  his  kind  services  I  secured  an 
introduction  to  the  Governor  of  Irkoutsk,  and  several 
merchants,  all  of  whom  tendered  me  their  kind  offices. 
Mr.  Gunsollis  was  a  traveller,  and  only  six  months  before 
I  saw  him  he  had  been  on  the  island  of  Sakhalein  spend- 
ing several  weeks  among  the  natives  and  convicts.  Being 
a  close  observer  and  an  uncommonly  intelligent  man,  he 
had  gathered  a  great  deal  of  information  of  much  value 
to  the  world  at  large,  and  as  we  spent  an  evening  together 
he  gave  me  the  advantage  of  his  newly  acquired  knowl- 
edge respecting  Sakhalein. 

This  island,  which  is  nearly  600  miles  in  length,  and 
about  as  large  in  area  as  the  State  of  Illinois,  was  not 
explored  until  the  year  1848,  previous  to  which  time  it 
was  supposed  to  be  a  portion  of  the  Siberian,  or  Man- 
churian  mainland.  Along  the  coast  it  is  generally  very 
rocky  and  precipitous,  while  in  the  interior  there  is  a 
chain  of  mountains  which  rise  considerably  above  the 
limit  of  vegetation.  Nearly  every  part  of  the  island  is 
wild  and  desolate,  with  a  population  of  15,000  persons, 
divided  between  Gilyaks,  Tunguse,  Oroks,  Kuriles,  and 
Ainos,  the  latter  supposed  to  be  the  aboriginal  popula- 
tion, while  all  the  natives  subsist  on  fish  and  wild  game. 

Nevilskoy,  Rear  Admiral  of  the  Russian  navy,  landed 
on  the  island  in  1848  and  accomplished  a  partial  explora- 


378 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


tion.  Ho  found  it  rich  with  coal,  and  this  discovery  led 
his  Government  to  negotiate  with  Japan  (to  which  the 
island  belonged)  for  its  purchase.  Russia  was  in  great 
need  of  a  coaling  station  in  the  Pacific,  and  this  want 
was  supplied  by 
a  purchase  of 
the  island  about 
t  AV  e  1  v  e  years 
ago.  Directly 
after  the  acquire- 
ment of  this  des- 
olate wilderness, 
suggestions  were 
made  to  Alexan- 
der II.  which 
subsequently  led 
that  Emperor  to 
establish  penal 
colonies  on  the 
island,  by  which 
labor  many  coal 
mines  were  open- 
ed and  are  still 
worked. 

The  port  of 
Dui,  which  is  sit- 
uated about  the 
center  of  the 
western  coast,  is 
a  small  military  AINOS'  A*OR'G*es  OF  SAKHALEIN. 

station,  but  is  nevertheless  the  most  important  place  on  the 
Island.  It  contains  five  prisons,  all  of  which  are  small  build- 
ings, in  which  are  crowded  nearly  2,000  exiles.  In  winter 
the  atmosphere  is  freezing  cold,  and  but  for  the  crowding 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  379 

it  would  be  impossible  for  the  convicts  to  survive  even  a 
moderate  winter ;  as  it  is,  frost-bitten  hands  and  feet  are 
very  common  among  the  inmates.  From  Dui,  the  exiles  are 
distributed  to  various  parts  of  the  island  as  prescribed  in 
their  sentences. 

The  post  is  garrisoned  by  500  men  whose  inactivity 
and  severance  from  social  relations  cause  their  existence  to 
be  scarcely  less  unhappy  than  the  exiles  whom  they 
guard.  About  one  hundred  miles  south  of  Dui  is  another 
post  called  Korsakovsk,  where  a  small  force  of  soldiers  is 
stationed,  whose  lonesome,  unchangeable  lives  are  even 
unrelieved  by  the  sight  of  the  supply  vessels  which  put 
in  at  Dui  two  or  three  times  a  year. 

Out  in  the  interior  are  two  mines,  one  of  which  is  called 
Dui  mine  and  the  other  Dui  farm,  where  a  large  number 
of  convicts  are  employed,  but  the  coal  lies  so  near  the 
surface  that  all  convicts  there  engaged  luckily  escape  the 
horrors  of  deep  mining ;  but  while  they  are  not  forced 
down  into  black  caverns,  away  forever  from  the  blessed 
sunlight,  as  are  many  convicts  in  Siberian  mines,  their 
lots  are  but  one  degree  less  melancholy  ;  in  fact  it  would 
sometimes  appear  that  officials  on  Sakhalein  are  more 
devilishly  barbarous  than  are  those  at  Kara.  The  knout 
and  scorpion  are  used  almost  without  the  shadow  of  a 
cause  ;  malignantly  brutal  keepers,  never  so  content  as 
when  witnessing  the  agonies  of  extreme  suffering,  ex- 
pend all  their  surplus  force  by  exercising  with  instru- 
ments of  torture  upon  the  bared  backs  of  convicts.  The 
labor  jDerfornied  in  these  mines  is  not  so  onerous  as  in 
many  mines  in  Siberia,  for  the  reason  that  they  are 
worked  for  the  Government,  while  a  majority  of  Siberian 
mines  are  worked  by  private  corporations  interested  in 
getting  as  much  out  of  the  exiles  as  possible.  But  there 
is  little  doubt  that  the  punishment  of  convicts  on  Sakha- 


380 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  381 

lein  is  greater  than  that  inflicted  at  any  penal   establish- 
ment in  Siberia  proper. 

To  escape  from  these  mines  is  almost  impossible,  for 
though  it  would  be  comparatively  easy  to  get  outside  the 
guards,  there  is  nothing  upon  which  a  convict  might  sub- 
sist while  journeying  the  200  miles  he  would  have  to  go 
before  reaching  a  point  where. he  could  hope  to"  effect  an 
embarkation  for  the  mainland.  Besides  the  dangers  of 
starvation  there  is  a  reward  of  three  roubles  placed  upon 
the  head  of  every  escaping  convict,  dead  or  alive.  This 
barbaric  outlawry  is  taken  advantage  of  by  the  native 
Gilyaks,  who  prowl  through  every  by-way  in  search  of 
convicts,  not  with  any  intention  of  capturing  them,  but 
to  shoot  them  down  like  wild  beasts.  This  system  of 
man-hunting  is  carried  on  so  near  the  convict  quarters 
that  many  unfortunate  exiles,  with  no  thought  of  attempt- 
ing to  escape,  fall  victims  within  a  stone's  throw  of  their 
barracks,  having  unknowingly  come  within  range  of 
the  perfidious  Gilyaks,  who,  upon  applying  for  the  re- 
ward, are  sure  to  make  out  a  big  story  of  how  they  de- 
tected their  victims  in  a  desperate  effort  to  escape.  The 
proof  required  before  payment  is  the  production  of  the 
severed  head  of  the  convict ;  thus,  when  the  Gilyaks  kill  an 
exile  on  Sakhalein  they  cut  off  his  head  and  carry  it  to 
the  Governor ;  and  inasmuch  as  the  convicts  are  all 
branded  it  is  easy  to  decide  whether  or  not  the  applicant 
has  made  any  mistake. 

On  the  lower  coast,  which  is  sandy,  there  is  a  vegeta- 
ble growth  similar  to  South  American  Kale,  which  the 
Amos  gather  for  their  own  use  ;  and  also  for  transport 
to  Japan,  where  they  sell  large  quantities  of  the  herb. 
It  is  said  to  make  a  very  palatable  soup,  while  its  cheap- 
ness recommends  it  to  the  Japanese  poor. 

The  Qraks,  who  number  about  5,000,  are  hunters  and 


382 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


fishers  ;  they  live  in  cone-shaped  houses  made  of  thatch, 
which  are  set  on  poles  about  twelve  feet  above  ground. 


Bears  are  plentiful  on  the  island,  and  these  the  Oraks 
kill  with  spears,  in  a  manner  similar  to  that  of  the  Gilyaks 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  383 

of  Siberia.  Every  Orak  village  has  its  sacred  house, 
which  serves  as  a  repository  for  the  bones  of  those  ani- 
mals killed  by  residents  of  the  village.  The  interior  of 
these  sacred  houses  is  filled  with  all  the  bones  of  the  bears 
except  the  skulls,  which  are  placed  on  poles  and  set  in  the 
ground  around  the  building.  The  Oraks  are  very  super- 
stitious, worshipping  no  particular  deity,  but  practice 
many  singular  rites  under  the  belief  that  they  will  bring 
them  good.  They  regard  no  other  charm,  or  amulet,  so 
potential  as  that  made  of  some  portion  of  a  bear's  skull, 
while  all  the  bones  of  that  animal  are  supposed  to  pos- 
sess magical  powers,  hence  the  pains  taken  by  each  vil- 
lage to  preserve  them. 

I  was  anxious  to  find  some  one  who  had  visited  Mko- 
laefsk,  and  was  familiar  with  that  famous  prison,  so  com- 
municating this  desire  to  Gunsollis,  he  assured  me  that  it 
would  not  be  difficult  to  find  inlrkoutsk  persons  from  any 
part  of  Siberia  ;  we  therefore  went  out  together  the  fol- 
lowing day,  and  before  an  hour  had  elapsed  he  found 
three  different  persons  thoroughly  familiar  with  Niko- 
laefsk,  one  of  whom  had  been  an  exile  there  some  years 
ago.  Through  the  assistance  of  Gunsollis  and  Schleuter 
I  obtained  from  these  a  large  fund  of  information  re- 
specting that  dreaded  prison,  which,  in  some  respects,  is 
said  to  be  more  feared  than  Kara. 

Nikolaefsk  is  situated  near  the  extreme  eastern  coast 
of  Siberia,  on  a  neck  of  the  Gulf  of  Tartary  and  oppo- 
site the  north-west  coast  of  Sakhalein,  or,  more  properly, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Amoor  River.  It  contains  a  pop- 
ulation of  about  5,000,  and  has  a  few  really  excellent 
buildings.  My  informants  dispelled  the  popular  impres- 
sion concerning  the  treatment  of  prisoners  there,  and 
assured  me  that  the  belief  of  cruelties  practiced  by  Nik- 
olaefsk  officials  arose  out  of  the  fact  that  it  lies  at  the 


384 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


VIEWS   ON  THE  ISLAND  OF  SAKHALEIN. 
l.Ainos  Kale  Hunters.    2.  Anlva  Harbor.    3;  Orok  Dwellings.     4.  Island  Gilyaks.     5.  Port  DuL 
7,  Korsakovtk.    8.  Kuriles.     9.  Orok  Hunters. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA  385 

end  of  overland  travel.  Convicts  who  are  sent  by  the 
transport  route  to  Sakhalein  here  conclude  their  4000 
miles  of  foot  journey,  and  the  few  who  survive  the  ter- 
rors of  such  a  march  are  so  broken  down  by  their  loads 
of  chains  and  unexampled  miseries  that  they  are  quite 
ready  to  regard  this  last  place  on  the  journey  as  a  very 
hades.  This  impression  also  extends  to  visitors,  because 
in  no  other  place  can  such  emaciated,  sorrowful  looking 
people  be  seen,  nearly  one-half  of  whom  are  insane.  It 
is  not  an  unusual  sight  to  witness  many  patients  in  the 
Nikolaefsk  hospitals,  the  skin  on  whose  wrists  and  ankles 
is  worn  entirely  away  by  heavy  chains,  leaving  exposed 
the  raw  and  angry  tendons. 

The  climate  about  Nikolaefsk  is  dreadfully  severe  in 
winter,  and  on  account  of  imperfect  protection  many 
convicts  die  there  in  the  prisons  of  cold.  Yet  there  is  a 
humanity  among  the  officers  at  these  prisons  found  at 
few  other  penal  stations  in  Siberia ;  the  sufferings  of 
convicts  are  attended  to  by  a  commission  who  derive,  in 
addition  to  a  salary  from  the  Government,  contributions 
from  those  who  are  charitably  disposed,  which  latter  is 
greater  tnaii  the  salaries.  When  the  exiles  are  so  far  re- 
covered as  to  be  able  to  proceed  to  Sakhalein  they  are 
taken  by  a  Russian  man-of-war  to  port  Dui  and  there 
distributed. 

It  very  frequently  happens  that  rather  than  go  to  Sak- 
halein the  convicts  will  attempt  to  escape  from  Nikolaef sk, 
sometimes  in  squads  and  at  others  singly  or  in  small  par- 
ties. Formerly  there  was  a  reward  offered  in  all  of  east 
Siberia,  by  governors  of  the  several  districts,  for  the 
head  of  every  escaping  convict,  like  that  which  still  pre- 
vails in  Sakhalein.  During  the  continuance  of  this  bar- 
barous regulation  several  native  tribes  left  off  fishing 
and  hunting  wild  animals,  and  took  up  the  new  occupa- 


386 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANt> 


tion  of  hunting  exiles.  Such  of  those  as  could  secure 
guns  conducted  a  thriving  business  in  summer  time  when 
the  number  of  fugitives  was  greatest.  These  head  hunt- 
ers went  on  horseback,  and  around  their  waists  they 
wore  a  broad  belt  to  which  they  tied  the  heads  of  their 
victims.  When  a  convict  was  found  by  these  murderous 
heathen  they  showed  him  no  mercy,  but  shot  him  down  ; 
if  the  wound  did  not  prove  fatal,  but  sufficient  to  bring 


KILLING  OF  ESCAPING  EXILES  FOR  THEIR  CLOTHES. 


the  victim  to  the  ground,  the  hunter  rushed  upon  him 
with  a  large  knife  and  cut  off  his  head  ;  strings  were 
then  made  fast  to  the  hair  by  which  the  severed  head  was 
tied  to  the  hunter's  belt.  The  body  was  also  stripped  of 
its  clothing,  which,  though  generally  old  and  composed 
of  nothing  but  reindeer  skins,  was  valued  so  highly  that 
since  the  withdrawal  of  money  rewards  by  governors,. 


EXILE  LIISE  Itf  SIBERIA. 


387 


388  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

these  hunters  continued  shooting  convicts  merely  for 
their  clothes.  Headquarters  for  the  payment  of  these 
rewards  was  Irbit,  Irkoutsk,  Yakoutsk,  and  Yeniseisk, 
but  a  hunter  might  have  his  heads  cashed  at  nearly  any 
post-station  by  accepting  a  liberal  discount. 

Even  to  this  day  not  a  few  exiles  are  killed  every  year 
by  Gilyaks  and  Tartars  for  no  other  reward  than  the 
clothes  worn  by  the  unfortunate  men ;  for  though  the 
Government  no  longer  pays  a  premium  for  heads,  it  ex- 
empts the  murderer  of  an  escaping  hard-labor  exile  from 
punishment. 

It  is  told  that  in  September  of  1856,  a  battalion  of 
soldiers  started  from  Nikolaefsk  up  the  Amoor  land 
route  for  Shilkinsk  Zavod,  but  after  proceeding  less  than 
a  hundred  versts  they  were  overtaken  by  a  snow-storm 
which  so  blinded  them  that  progress  was  impossible,  and  to 
keep  from  freezing  they  were  compelled  to  bundle  to- 
gether. But  a  more  horrible  death  than  that  by  freezing 
soon  threatened,  for  having  provided  themselves  with  ra- 
tions for  only  a  few  days  their  store  of  food  failed  them. 
Grim  necessity  was  fought  against  until  at  last  they  were 
forced  by  hunger  to  draw  lots  to  decide  who  should  be 
sacrificed  that  their  bodies  might  furnish  food  for  the 
more  fortunate.  Nearly  one-twentieth  of  the  command 
was  killed  in  this  way  and  eaten  by  their  comrades. 

Though  no  cases  of  cannibalism  are  known  among  con- 
victs who  were  trying  to  effect  an  escape,  there  are  hun- 
dreds of  incidents  where  they  have  been  frozen  to  death 
and  their  bodies  found  in  the  forests  or  on  the  highways. 
So  sympathetic  are  the  people  of  Siberia,  and  particularly 
do  they  so  well  know  the  sufferings  which  every  exile 
must  undergo  while  fleeing  for  liberty,  that  it  is  their 
custom,  just  before  retiring  each  night,  to  place  some 
bread  and  salt  on  the  outside  window-sill,  where  it  may 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


389 


be  convenient  to  any  one 
passing  by  ;  many  a  poor 
fugitive  has  thus  been  fed 
and  his  life  preserved. 

There  is  one  other  dis- 
tributing point,  or  etape 
prison,  on  the  Siberian 
coast,  Yladivostock,  which 
is  a  place  of  considerable 
commercial  importance,  in 
fact  it  is  the  chief  Russian 
sea  port  on  the  Pacific. 
There  is  a  considerable 
Russian  population  in  the 
place,  which  has  altogether 
about  10,000  inhabitants, 
but  they  are  not  in  the  ma- 
jority. Situated  so  near 
China,  the  town  has  at- 
tracted a  large  number  of 
Mongolians ,  notwithstand- 
ing the  fact  that  they  are 
treated  with  great  disre- 
spect and  on  two  occasions 
have  been  ordered  out  of 
the  district,  while  China 
has  vainly  tried  to  prevent 
emigration  of  her  subjects 
to  Russian  soil.  In  1861 
China  ceded  the  sea-coast 
to  Russia  and  at  the  same 
time  prohibited  her  sub- 
jects from  colonizing  on 
Siberian  soil  with  their 
wives.  The  rich  Chinese 


390 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


therefore  returned  home,  leaving  the  poor  who  were 
next  to  outlawed  by  the  rigorous  legal  requirements 
which  they  were  unable  to  obey  ;  they  naturally  drifted 
into  crime,  and  being  soon  after  joined  by  Manchu  brig- 
ands, known  as  Manzas,  there  succeeded  a  regular  pirati- 
cal organization  which  has  not  yet  been  entirely  suppressed . 
These  Manzas  robbers  are  upon  both  land  and  water,  kill- 
ing on  the  highways  and  scuttling  small  crafts  on  the 


A  COREAN  HOUSE  IN  VLADIVOSTOCK. 

coastwaters,  so  that  travelling  through  the  Primorsk  dis- 
trict is  always  very  dangerous. 

The  Coreans  are  also  in  considerable  numbers  about 
Vladivostock,  and  because  of  their  frugal,  industrious 
habits  they  are  despised  and  beaten  by  the  Russ  popula- 
tion. This  treatment  is  due  to  the  identical  causes  which 
have  operated  in  San  Francisco  against  the  Chinese,  for 
inasmuch  as  nearly  one-half  of  the  commodities  used  by 
the  better  classes  in  the  Primorsk  are  of  American  pro- 
duction, the  merchant  and  mechanic  think  that  American 
prices  and  wages  should  obtain  in  Vladivostock.  The 


EXILE  LITE  IN  SIBERIA.  391 

Coreans,  however,  are  willing  to  work  for  very  small 
wages  and 'their  bartering  is  conducted  on  small  margins, 
hence  the  race  prejudice.  The  Government  of  Coreahas 
attempted  to  arrest  emigration  by  making  it  a  capital  of- 
fence for  any  of  its  subjects  to  settle  in  a  foreign  country. 
This  law  had  a  dreadful  enforcement  in  18G8,  when  1,400 
Coreans  were  run  out  of  the  Primorsk  and  upon  returning 
to  Corea  they  were  summarily  beheaded. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

THE  most  interesting  district  in  Siberia  is  about  Yak- 
outsk, which  is  a  city  of  6,000  inhabitants,  and  the  capi- 
tal of  the  Yakoutsk  Government.  A  large  trade  is  car- 
ried on  between  Irkoutsk  and  Yakoutsk,  so  that  I  had  no 
difficulty  in  finding  scores  of  persons  who  had  been  long 
residents  of  the  latter  place,  and  would  give  me  whatever 
information  I  desired  concerning  it.  By  Schleuter's  as- 
sistance I  interviewed  the  military  Governor  of  Yakoutsk, 
who  was  on  a  visit  to  Irkoutsk,  and  to  whom  I  was  intro- 
duced by  the  Governor  of  the  latter  place.  It  was  my 
good  fortune  also  to  find  and  talk  with  three  men  who 
had  served  short  sentences  of  exile  near  Yakoutsk.  From 
these  several  sources  I  gained  a  very  satisfactory  descrip- 
tion of  life  in  and  about  the  city. 

The  government  of  Yakoutsk  is  the  largest  in  Siberia, 
covering  an  area  greater  than  that  of  all  Europe,  if  we 
except  Russia.  The  town  itself,  situated  on  the  Lena 
River,  in  65°  north  latitude,  presents  an  odd  blending  of 
cosmopolite  architecture,  from  the  graceful  styles  adopt- 
ed by  Russian  nobility  to  the  summer  yourtsoi  the  native 
Yakutes.  Generally  considered,  however,  there  are  few 


392 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


modern  appearances  about  the  place ;  instead  of  using 
horses  or  reindeer  for  draught  purposes,  oxen  are  chosen, 
and  these  slow,  plodding  creatures  are  also  used  for  rid- 
ing ;  but  a  still  more  grotesque  characteristic  of  the  city 
is  found  in  the  fact  that,  discarding  horses  and  the  con- 


EXILES  ON  THE  ISLAND  OF  SAKHALEIN. 

ventional  ways  of  other  countries,  the  ladies  of  Yakoutsk 
ride  on  the  backs  of  oxen — a-straddle.  I  cannot  well 
imagine  a  more  humorous  sight  than  a  Yakoutsk  belle, 
dressed  in  the  bright  toggery  peculiar  to  fashion,  going 
out  shopping  in  the  city  astride  a  mewling  ox  whose 


EXILE  LirE  IN  SIBERIA.  393 


shambling  gait  is  marked  by  sinuous  droolings,  and  whose 
whisking  tail  in  summer  time  laps  up  little  pools  of 
sewage  in  the  streets  to  distribute  in  a  delicate  spray 
over  the  fair  rider. 

Yakoutsk  is  said  to  be  the  coldest  spot  on  earth  ;  from 
December  1st  to  February  1st,  the  mean  temperature  be- 
ing 58°  Fah.  below  zero,  while  not  infrequently  it  reach- 
es 80°  below.  Extreme  as  this  cold  is,  no  particular  dis- 
comfort is  experienced  ;  while  the  mercury  is  frozen 
market  women  may  be  seen  standing  before  their  wares 
with  arms  bared  above  the  elbows,  laughing  and  chatting 
as  if  the  weather  were  delightful.  In  sledge  travelling 
during  such  temperature,  the  driver  sleeps  in  the  clothing 
he  wears  all  day,  and  will  curl  up  in  his  vehicle  at  night, 
draw  the  fur  hood  of  his  great  coat  over  his  head  and 
sleep  under  the  shivering  stars,  and  no  doubt  dream  of 
violets  and  primroses  bursting  into  life  under  a  warm,  ex- 
hilarating, spring  time  sun. 

The  Russian  population  of  the  Yakoutsk  Government  is 
confined  chiefly  to  the  Upper  Lena,  Yakoutsk  and  its 
vicinity.  The  Tunguse  are  also  found  on  the  eastern 
and  western  confines  of  the  district,  but  are  rarely  met 
with  in  the  interior.  There  is  another  race  called  the 
Yukaghirs,  in  the  province,  whose  numbers  are  computed 
at  about  2,000,  but  so  wild  is  their  nature  that  their  ethno- 
logical peculiarities  are  but  little  known.  They  are  only 
met  with  near  the  Arctic  shores,  between  the  Yana  and 
Kolima  rivers.  They  were  once  a  very  powerful  tribe,  so 
tradition  says,  and  which  statement  is"  partly  proved  by 
the  tumuli  and  burial  places  still  to  be  found  along  the 
Lena  river.  These  relics  of  former  tribal  power  contain 
human  bones,  bows,  arrows,  spears,  and  an  instrument 
similar  to  that  occasionally  found  among  the  more  ignor- 
ant Laplanders,  which  they  call  a  "  magic  drum,"  but  it 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  395 

resembles  a  pot  more  than  a  drum,  being  of  considerable 
depth  and  closed  at  one  end  with  reindeer  skin. 

The  Yukaghirs  live  almost  entirely  on  the  reindeer  they 
kill  during  spring  and  autumn.  At  these  seasons  a  mos- 
quito, not  unlike  the  buffalo  gnat  of  our  Mississippi  bot- 
toms, and  so  numerous  that  at  times  they  almost  darken 
the  sky,  so  torment  the  reindeer  that  they  seek 
refuge  in  the  rivers,  where  they  remain  until  winter  sets 
in.  This  habit  is  taken  advantage  of  by  the  Yukaghirs, 
who  post  themselves  under  cover  beside  a  frequented 
stream  and  await  the  reindeer,  which  come  down  from 
neighboring  forests  in  immense  herds  and  enter  the  water. 
When  the  animals  have  taken  to  the  stream  they  are  set 
upon  by  the  hunters,  who  appear  on  both  sides  and  with 
long  spears  slaughter  great  numbers. 

The  Yukaghirs  are   inveterate   smokers  of  a  tobacco 

O 

grown  in  the  Ukraine,  which  they  mix  with  small,  half- 
decayed  chips  so  as  to  make  it  go  further ;  in  smoking 
not  a  whiff  is  allowed  to  escape  into  the  air,  but  all  is  in- 
haled and  swallowed,  producing  an  effect  somewhat  sim- 
ilar to  a  mild  dose  of  opium.  Tobacco  is  considered 
their  first  and  greatest  luxury.  Women  and  children  all 
smoke,  the  latter  learning  to  do  so  as  soon  as  they  are  able 
to  toddle.  Any  funds  remaining  after  the  supply  of 
tobacco  has  been  laid  in  are  devoted  to  the  purchase  of 
brandy.  A  Yukaghir,  it  is  said,  never  intoxicates  him- 
self alone,  but  calls  upon  his  family  to  share  the  drink, 
even  children  in  arms  being  supplied  with  a  portion. 

In  the  center  of  the  Yakutsk  province,  occupying  the 
valley  of  the  Lena,  roam  the  Yakutes,  some  of  whom  are 
met  as  far  off  as  Nikolaef sk.  They  are  of  middle  height, 
and  of  a  light  copper  color,  with  black  hair,  which  the 
men  cut  close.  The  sharp  lines  of  their  faces  express 
indolent  and  amiable  gentleness  rather  than  vigor  and 


396  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

passion.  They  bear  a  close  resemblance  to  the  North 
American  Indians  ;  their  appearance  is  that  of  a  people 
who  have  grown  wild  rather  than  of  a  thoroughly  and 
originally  rude  race.  Those  who  have  been  long  settled 
among  the  Russians  have  perhaps  become  somewhat 
more  polished  than  their  wandering  brethren.  As  a  nice 
they  are  good-tempered,  orderly,  hospitable,  and  capable 
of  enduring  great  privation  with  patience  ;  but  in  inde- 
pendence of  character  they  contrast  unfavorably  with 
their  Tunguse  neighbors.  Lay  a  finger  in  anger  on  one 
of  the  Tunguse,  and  nothing  will  induce  him  to  forget 
the  insult ;  whereas  with  the  Yakutes,  the  more  they  are 
thrashed  the  better  they  work.* 

The  winter  dwellings  of  the  people  have  doors  of  raw 
hides,  and  log  or  wicker  rwalls  calked  with  cow-dung, 
and  flanked  with  banks  of  earth  to  the  height  of  the 
windows.  The  latter  are  made  of  sheets  of  ice,  kept  in 
their  place  from  the  outside  by  a  slanting  pole,  the  lower 
end  of  which  is  fixed  in  the  ground.  They  are  rendered 
air-tight  by  pouring  on  water,  which  quickly  freezes 
round  the  edges  ;  and  the  fact  that  it  takes  a  long  time 
to  melt  these  blocks  of  ice  thus  fixed  is  highly  suggestive 
of  what  the  temperature  must  be,  both  without  and 
within.  The  flat  roof  is  covered  with  earth,  and  over  the 
door,  facing  the  east,  the  boards  project,  making  a  cov- 
ered place  in  front,  like  the  natives'  houses  in  the  Cau- 
casus. Under  the  same  roof  are  the  winter  shelters  for 
the  cows  and  for  the  people,  the  former  being  the  larger. 

*  Strahlenberg  divides  them  into  10  tribes,  and  Syboreen's  Almanack  for  1876 
gives  their  number  at  210,000.  They  belong  to  the  great  Turk  family,  and 
hence  their  Siberian  locality  is  remarkable,  because  the  Turks  have  ever  been 
the  people  to  displace  others,  whereas  the  Yakutes  have  been  themselves  dis- 
placed, and  driven  into  this  inhospitable  climate,  it  is  supposed,  by  the 
stronger  Buriats, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


397 


VIEWS  OF  THE  ABODES  OF  THE  EXILES  NEAR  YAKOUTSK. 
1.  &  2  Summer  Houses  of  the  liUiles.   3.  &  §.  Inferior  views  of  same.    *.  Types  of  the  Bur»l  Population. 


0.  Grave  Yard. 


398  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

The  fireplace  consists  of  a  wicker  frame  plastered  over 
with  clay,  room  being  left  for  a  man  to  pass  between  the 
fireplace  and  the  wall.  The  hearth  is  made  of  beaten 
earth,  and  on  it  there  is  at  all  times  a  blazing  fire, 
and  logs  of  larch-wood  throw  up  showers  of  sparks  to 
the  roof.  Young  calves,  like  children,  are  brought  into 
the  house  to  the  fire,  whilst  their  mothers  cast  a  con- 
tented look  through  the  open  door  at  the  back  of  the 
fireplace.  Behind  the  fireplace,  too,  are  the  sleeping- 
places  of  the  people,  which  in  the  poorer  dwellings  con- 
sists of  only  a  continuation  of  the  straw  laid  in  the  cow- 
house. 

In  the  winter  they  have  about  five  hours  of  <Jay  light, 
which  penetrates  as  best  it  can  through  the  icy  windows  ; 
and  in  the  evening  all  the  party  sit  round  the  fire  on  low 
stools,  men  and  women  smoking.  The  summer  yourts  of 
these  people  are  formed  of  poles  about  20  feet  long, 
which  are  united  at  the  top  into  a  roomy  cone,  covered 
with  pieces  of  bright  yellow  and  perfectly  flexible  birch 
bark,  which  are  not  merely  joined  together,  but  are  also 
handsomely  worked  along  the  seams  with  horsehair  thread . 

The  houses  are  not  overstocked  with  furniture,  and  the 
chief  cooking  utensil  is  a  large  iron  pot.  At  the  time  of 
the  invasion  of  the  Russians,  this  article  was  deemed  such 
a  treasure  that  the  price  asked  for  a  pot  was  as  many 
sable-skins  as  would  fill  it.  They  use  also  in  winter  a 
bowl-shaped  frame  of  wicker  work,  plastered  with  fro- 
zen cow-dung,  in  which  they  pound  their  porridge.  With 
regard  to  their  food,  the  Yakutes,  if  they  have  their 
choice,  love  to  eat  horse-flesh  ;  and  their  adage  says  that 
to  eat  much  meat,  and  grow  fat  upon  it,  is  the  highest 
destiny  of  man.  They  are  the  greatest  gluttons.  So  far 
back  as  the  days  of  Strahlenberg,  it  was  said  that  four 
would  eat  a  horse.  They  rarely  kill  their  oxen 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  399 

for  food  ;  and  ut  a  wedding,  the  favorite  dish  served  up 
by  the  bride  to  her  future  lord  is  a  boiled  horse's  head, 
with  horse-flesh  sausages.  When,  however,  horse-flesh 
or  beef  is  wanting,  they  are  not  at  all  nice  as  to  what 
they  consume,  for  they  eat  the  animals  they  take  for  fur, 
and  woe  to  the  unfortunate  horse  that  becomes  seriously 
injured  in  travel  !  It  is  killed  and  eaten  then  and  there, 
the  men  taking  off  their  girdles  to  give  fair  play  to  their 
stomachs,  which  swell  after  the  fashion  of  a  boa-constric- 
tor. Thus  earnestly  do  they  aspire  to  their  notion  of  the 
highest  destiny  of  man  !  Milk  is  in  general  request 
among  them,  whether  from  cows  or  mares  ;  and  when 
they  are  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Russians,  and  can  get 
flour,  they  do  so  ;  but  far  away  in  the  forests  they  make 
a  sort  of  porridge  or  bread,  not  exactly  of  sawdust,  but 
of  the  under  bark  of  the  spruce,  fir,  and  larch,  which 
they  cut  in  small  pieces,  or  pound  in  a  mortar,  mixing  it 
with  in  ilk,  or  with  dried  fish,  or  boiling  it  with  glutinous 
tops  of  the  young  sprouts.  In  spring,  when  the  sap  is 
rising,  they  gather  the  bark  harvest.  They  make  also  fer- 
mented beverages  of  milk  ;  and  in  the  height  of  summer, 
when  the  mares  foal,  an  orgie  is  held,  at  which  the  men 
drain  enormous  bowls  of  this  intoxicating  liquor  ;  whilst 
the  women,  denied  the  privilege  of  intoxication,  solace 
themselves  by  getting  as  near  to  it  as  they  can  by  smok- 
ing tobacco.  The  distillation  of  sour  milk  is  also  prac- 
ticed, producing  a  coarse  spirit  known  as  ariyui.  They 
devour  likewise  enormous  quantities  of  melted  butter. 
This  also  can  be  prepared  in  such  a  way  as  to  cause  in- 
toxication when  taken  in  sufficient  quantities. 

The  dress  of  the  Yakut os  resembles  in  its  main  fea- 
tures that  of  the  other  natives  of  Siberia,  save,  perhaps, 
that  they  are  fonder  of  ornament.  Both  sexes  riding  a 
good  deal  on  oxen  and  horses,  a  perpendicular  slit  is  made 


400  KUvSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


PENAL  QUARTERS  AT  YAKOUTSK. 
1.  Governor's  Residence.    2.  Bazaar.    3.  Lodges  of  Reindeer  Skins.    4.  Hospital.     5. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  401 

up  the  back  from  the  bottom  of  the  synayakli^  or  upper 
garment,  in  order  to  render  the  wearer  comfortable  in 
the  saddle,  and  some  of  the  women  wear  behind  them  a 
cushion  or  pad,  to  save  them  from  the  rough  motion  of  the 
animals.  During  the  milder  part  of  the  year  a  robe, 
made  of  very  pliable  leather,  stained  yellow,  is  worn, 
which  indoors  is  frequently  laid  aside,  and  males  and  fe- 
males sit  by  the  fire,  leaving  the  upper  part  of  the  body 
naked . 

The  boots  made  of  this  leather  worn  by  the  women  fit 
tight  to  the  leg,  and  have  at  the  top  a  flap  of  black  velvet 
with  red  cloth  trimming,  which  can  be  turned  down  and 
exposed  for  show  in  fair  weather,  or  turned  up,  bringing 
the  boots  to  the  thighs.  On  each  foot  are  two  broad 
leather  thongs,  five  or  six  feet  long,  to  wind  around  the 
leg.  Water-proof  boots  are  also  made  by  the  Yakutes, 
which  they  call  Torbosis;  these  are  cut  from  horse  hide, 
steeped  in  sour  milk,  then  smoked,  and  lastly  rubbed 
well  with  grease  and  soot.  They  will  wear  indefinitely, 
and  are  so  impervious  to  dampness  that  the  wearer 
may  tramp  through  water,  mud  and  snow  without  incon- 
venience. 

There  is  a  large  travel  between  Yakoutsk  and  Okhotsk, 
Kamtschatka,  distance  800  miles,  which  is  performed  by 
the  use  of  dogs,  horses  and  reindeer.  The  latter,  I  was 
surprised  to  learn,  are  used  for  riding  as  much  as  for 
draught  purposes.  It  is  much  more  difficult  to  maintain 
one's  seat  on  a  reindeer  than  it  is  on  a  camel.  To  get  on 
the  animal's  back,  as  one  would  mount  a  donkey,  would 
probably  cripple  the  deer  for  life.  The  saddle  is  there- 
fore placed  on  its  shoulder,  close  to  the  neck,  and  to 
mount,  the  rider,  holding  the  bridle,  stands  at  the  right 
side  of  the  animal,  with  his  face  turned  forward.  He 
then  raises  his  left  foot  to  the  saddle,  which  he  never 


402  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

touches  with  his  hands,  and  springing  with  the  right  leg, 
and  aided  also  by  a  pole,  which  he  holds  in  his  right  hand, 
he  gains  his  seat.  The  native  girls  and  women  are  as  ex- 
pert in  this  jumping  as  the  men,  and  rarely  want  assist- 
ance in  mounting. 

The  practiced  reindeer  riders  acquire  the  habit  of  strik- 
ing gently  with  the  heel,  alternately  right  and  left,  at 
every  step,  just  behind  the  animal's  shoulders.  This  is 
done,  not  for  the  purpose  of  stimulating  the  deer,  but  be- 
cause the  motion  described  is  the  surest  means  of  main- 
taining equilibrium.  The  staff,  too,  with  which  the  rider 
mounts  is  carried  in  his  hand,  and  is  used  for  maintaining 
an  equipoise  in  riding ;  but  any  attempt  of  the  rider,  in 
the  first  critical  moment,  to  support  himself  by  resting 
the  staff  on  the  ground,  is  sure  to  end  in  his  being 
unseated. 

There  is  a  very  large  settlement  of  convicts  in  the 
Ytikoutsk  Government,  a  greater  portion  of  which  is  on 
the  Lena  river.  These  penal  colonies  are  generally  com- 
posed of  men  and  women  sent  into  exile  without  hard 
labor,  in  pursuance  of  an  Imperial  ukase  that  contempla- 
ted a  settlement  of  the  province.  The  district  about 
Yakoutsk  is  wonderfully  fertile,  notwithstanding  the  fact 
that  the  ground  is  frozen  to  a  depth  of  fifty  feet,  while 
during  the  summer  it  does  not  thaw  out  more  than  three 
feet  below  the  surface.  But  even  with  these  drawbacks 
to  production,  the  soil  is  said  to  yield  forty-fold  of  such 
vegetables  as  cabbage,  potatoes,  radishes,  turnips  and 
gherkins.  Emperor  Nicholas  was  very  anxious  to  settle 
this  section  with  an  industrious  population,  and  to  accom- 
plish this  he  promulgated  an  edict  designed  for  the  pun- 
ishment of  petty  offenders,  by  which  they  were  to  be  sent 
across  Siberia  and  colonized  at  the  most  advantageous 
points  in  the  Yakoutsk  Government.  It  was  also  this 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


403 


idea  which  prompted  Alexander  I.  to  encourage  the  estab- 
lishment of  zemstas,  communal  parliaments,  to  which  he 
granted  powers  (heretofore  described)  to  send  into  exile 
any  one  of  the  commune  adjudged  guilty  of  vagrancy, 
improvidence,  drunkenness,  or  of  any  bad  example.  These 
measures  have  caused  a  more  general  settlement  of  the 
Yakoutsk  Government  than  any  other  province  in  Siberia, 
the  population  being  about  250,000. 


EXILES'  HOMES  ON  THE  LENA — HOUSES  OF  DRIED  DUNG. 

There  are  penal  quarters  in  the  city  of  Yakoutsk  that 
are  fairly  comfortable.  They  are  made  of  hewn  logs 
joined  together  by  dovetailing  and  are  lined  with  dry 
clay.  These  quarters,  however,  are  only  for  a  temporary 
lodgment  of  prisoners,  and  are  therefore  called  etape 
prisons  ;  they  rarely  contain  more  than  one  hundred  con- 
victs at  one  time,  as  those  received  are  quickly  distribut- 


404  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ed  to  various  points  in  the  Government  where  they  are 
made  to  shift  for  themselves ;  though  if  a  convict  be 
accompanied  by  his  family  he  is  assisted  for  the  first  three 
years  by  the  Government,  which  gives  him  a  daily  allow- 
ance of  about  ten  cents.  Along  the  Lena  these  convicts 
are  chiefly  engaged  cutting  wood,  fishing  and  hunting. 
Their  houses  are  made  of  baked  cow-dung,  because  of  the 
warmth  this  material  secures,  excluding  cold  much  better 
than  any  other  known  substance. 

But  the  most  peculiar  settlement  in  Siberia,  indeed  in 
all  the  world,  is  that  of  the  Scopsi,  a  religious  sect 
already  mentioned,  which  is  established  in  a  forest 
near  Yakoutsk.  These  people  entertain  such  a  singular 
belief  that  every  other  phase  of  fanaticism,  whether 
Shamanism,  Fakirism  or  any  other  absurd  ism,  appears 
transcendently  consistent  and  wholesome  in  comparison. 
I  have  searched  through  encyclopedias  and  questioned 
the  most  learned  Russians  in  vain  to  find  anything  con- 
cerning the  origin  of  their  strange  faith.  Nevertheless 
the  Scopsi  have  existed  for  hundreds  of  years,  but  the 
first  decree  of  banishment  against  them  was  issued  by 
Peter  the  Great,  though  in  what  year  I  could  not  learn. 
They  found  their  faith  upon  the  xix  chapter,  12th  verse, 
of  St.  Matthew,  which  reads  as  follows  : 

"  For  there  are  some  eunuchs,  which  were  so  born 
from  their  mother's  womb  :  and  there  are  some  eunuchs, 
which  were  made  eunuchs  of  men  :  and  there  be  eunuchs, 
which  have  made  themselves  eunuchs  for  the  kingdom  of 
heaven's  sake.  He  that  is  able  to  receive  it,  let  him  re- 
ceive it." 

The  interpretation  placed  upon  this  text  by  the  Scopsi 
is  so  literal  that  if  it  obtained  generally  the  earth  would 
be  without  any  human  inhabitants  in  one  generation. 
They  also  base  their  doctrine  upon  some  of  St.  Paul's 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


405 


letters,  wherein  he  advises  against  marriage  and  inferen- 
tially  predicts  that  the  promised  millennium  can  come 
only  through  a  complete  abnegation  of  sexual  desires. 
I  do  not  say  that  Paul  intended  to  discourage  the  law  of 
replenishment,  but  that  the  Scopsi  so  interpret  his  writ- 
ings. 

This  peculiarly  fanatical  sect  has  not  only  existed  in 
Russia,  but,  despite  the  most  repressive  measures  under- 


SCOPSI  COLONY  HOUSES  NEAR  YAKOUTSK. 

taken  by  the  Government  for  their  suppression,  they 
have  increased  until  well  informed  persons  in  the  Empire 
place  their  numbers  at  not  less  than  10,000.  There  is  a 
law  on  the  Russian  statute  books  making  it  a  crime,  pun- 
ishable by  deportation,  for  any  one  to  attend  services 
held  by  the  Scopsi,  and  all  who  are  discovered  to  be  mem- 
bers of,  or  in  sympathy  with  the  sect,  are  sent  into  exile 
26 


406  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

,« 

in  the  Yakoutsk  district.  Being  denied  all  civil  privi- 
leges the  Scopsi  nevertheless  continue  to  propagate  their 
doctrines  by  holding  services  in  the  thick  forests,  where 
they  hope  to  escape  detection  from  government  spies. 

While  in  St.  Petersburg  I  met  a  young  man  who  had 
been  forced  into  an  adoption  of  this  singular  faith,  but 
who  was  a  servant  in  an  aristocratic  family  of  the  city. 
While  I  was  interviewing  Count  Tolstoi  this  man  came  in 
to  communicate  some  message  from  his  master  to  the 
Prime  Minister  ;  his  voice  and  appearance  were  so  strange 
that  my  curiosity  prompted  me  to  enquire  about  him, 
when  the  Count  informed  me  of  the  facts,  this  being  the 
first  time  I  had  ever  heard  of  such  a  sect.  I  therefore  at 
once  began  to  question  the  fellow,  whom  I  took  to  be 
about  twenty-seven  years  of  age,  and  was  rewarded  by 
receiving  from  him  a  description  of  the  Scopsi' s  prac- 
tices. 

Not  only  in  retired  country  places,  but  also  in  cities  do 
the  Scopsi  hold  their  services,  but  they  are  necessarily  a 
secret  denomination,  who  regard  themselves  as  the  espe- 
cially anointed  children  of  God ;  they  have  priests  who 
travel  about  the  country,  providing  their  own  sustenance 
and  holding  services  only  among  such  persons  as  they 
first  obtain  a  satisfactory  opinion  from.  These  priests 
profess  great  familiarity  with  the  Bible,  and  their  argu- 
ments are  addressed  entirely  to  the  emotional  senses,  and 
so  effectively  that  a  majority  of  those  who  attend  are 
moved  by  such  excitement  that  they  gladly  accept 
mutilation  of  themselves.  They  believe  that  mankind 
were  conceived  in  sin,  to  purge  which  they  must  be  born 
again  into  a  state  of  purity ;  that  the  millennium  cannot 
appear  until  the  world  is  regenerated  through  purification, 
and  that  none  can  be  pure  in  heart  until  the  carnal  im- 
purities are  removed ;  hence  the  Scopsi  baptize  into 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  407 

what  they  call  the  new  life  of  purity  by  castration.  Men 
and  women  who  unite  with  this  sect  must  alike  submit  to 
mutilation,  the  operation  on  the  latter  consisting  of  an 
extraction  of  the  oviaries  through  an  incision  made  in 
the  side.  This  worse  than  heathenish  ceremonial,  how- 
ever, does  not  stop  with  a  mutilation  of  those  who  will- 
ingly submit  themselves  ;  but,  influenced  by  the  belief 
that  parents  must  provide  means  of  salvation  for  their 
children,  the  little  ones  of  both  sexes  are  forcibly  put  un- 
der the  priestly  scalpel. 

Practices  which  distinguish  the  Scopsi,  revolting  and 
foully  unnatural  as  they  are,  have  also  obtained  in  other 
nations,  and  even  to  this  day  are  not  unusual  in  Turkey 
and  Italy.  It  is  a  well  known  fact  that  the  tenor  singers 
in  the  Royal  Italian  Opera  at  Rome  are  castrates,  made 
so  by  Government  orders.  In  Turkey  the  custom  is  very 
common,  parents  frequently  unsexing  their  own  children 
to  sell  them  afterward  as  servants  in  harems  or  places  of 
monetary  trust.  In  Russia  it  is  also  practiced  upon  chil- 
dren who  are  afterward  raised  with  great  care,  for  when 
grown  they  command  large  salaries  in  fiduciary  posi- 
tions. It  is  said  that,  however  great  the  temptation  of- 
fered may  be,  a  castrate  will  never  betray  a  trust ;  that 
in  all  history  one  was  never  known  to  steal,  or  absent 
himself  from  any  duty.  Male  children  who  were  sub- 
jected to  this  barbarous  custom  in  earlier  days  were  not 
mutilated  by  like  means  as  now,  but  were  much  more  in- 
famously treated  ;  all  the  privates  were  cut  away,  after 
which  the  child  was  buried  to  the  waist  in  sand  ;  this  was 
to  stop  hemorrhage  and  prevent  the  exudation  of  serous 
fluid.  It  is  said  that  nearly  two-thirds  of  those  thus 
treated  died. 

There  is  also  a  colony  of  political  exiles  in  the  Yak- 
outsk  Government,  located  at  a  small  town  on  the  Lugi- 


408 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


na  river,  called  Villiski.  Its  population  is  a  fugative  one, 
for  the  reason  that  those  sent  there  are  at  most  only  sus- 
pects, many  of  whom  are  called  to  Russia  on  pardons,  or 


SCENES  IN  VILLISKI. 

1.  Barracks.      2.  &  3.  Private  Residence       4.  General  view  of  the  Town.      &.  Interior  of  a  Private 
House.     6.  City  Hail  and  Residence  of  the  Magistrate.      7.  Prison. 

sent  to  other  districts  ;  so  that  one  month  the  town  may 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  409 

have  a  population  of  nearly  two  thousand,  while  the  next 
month  it  may  have  less  than  five  hundred.  The  climate 
at  Villiski  is  dreadfully  severe,  even  colder,  some  say, 
than  at  Yakoutsk,  but  fortunately  the  exiles  there  have 
little  to  do  but  fish  in  summer  and  keep  themselves  warm 
in  winter. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

THE  recent  disastrous  results  attending  the  Jeannette, 
or  DeLong,  exploring  expedition,  which  are  now  (as  I 
write)  being  investigated  before  a  commission  at  Wash- 
ington, has  brought  the  Lena  River  into  such  prominence 
before  Americans  that  a  partial  history  of  the  stream  and 
the  country  which  it  drains  has  been  considered  applica- 
ble in  this  connection.  The  wrecking  of  DeLong  and  his 
party  at  the  Lena  delta,  the  loss  of  Lieutenant  Chipp  and 
his  men,  the  dreadful  march  of  Ninderman,  Melville  and 
Danenhower,  and  lastly,  how  the  returning  search  party 
under  Lieut.  Gilder  found  the  bodies  of  eight  of  that 
unfortunate  expedition  frozen  under  Siberian  snows  near 
the  upper  Lena,  have  been  too  recently  told  and  gener- 
ally read  to  need  repetition  here. 

While  at  Irkoutsk  I  was  very  near,  perhaps  within  a 
dozen  miles  of,  the  chief  source  of  the  Lena,  and  though 
never  along  the  stream,  I  saw  enough  of  Siberia  to  ap- 
proximate an  idea  of  the  desolate  country  through  which 
it  passes.  The  history  of  this  portion  of  Siberia,  so  far 
as  records  give  us  any  data  or  description,  starts  with  the 
conquests  of  the  Buriats  by  Cossacks  early  in  the  17th 
century.  After  30  years  of  fierce  warfare  between  these 
two  races,  the  Cossacks  made  themselves  masters  of  the 
district  about  Lake  Baikal,  and  then  pushed  northward 


410  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

along  the  Lena  River  until,  in  1632,  they  reached  the 
principal  town  of  the  Yakutes,  where  they  built  a  fort 
and  founded  the  city  of  Yakoutsk.  After  this  they  crossed 
the  Aldan  Mountains  and,  seven  years  later,  reached  the 
Sea  of  Okhotsk.  For  two  centuries  this  was  the  route 
followed  by  those  who  would  cross  Siberia  from  the  Urals 
to  the  Pacific,  or  vice  versa.  In  the  present  day  there  are 
two  other  roads.  All  must  go  by  the  route  from 
Tomsk  to  Irkoutsk,  but  from  thence  the  Pacific  can 
be  reached  either  by  crossing  .the  Mongolian  desert  to 
Peking,  or  by  traversing  the  Buriat  steppe,  and  so  de- 
scending the  Amoor.  The  second  of  these  routes  is  now 
the  best,  but  not  briefly  to  mention  the  old  route  would 
be  to  omit  much  interesting  information  concerning  the 
Lena,  with  its  native  population  and  fossilized  remains, 
as  well  as  to  miss  the  opportunity  of  hearing  a  little  of 
some  of  the  most  daring  and  adventurous  journeys  of  pre- 
vious travellers. 

I  allude  to  the  accounts  of  Strahlenberg,  De  Lesseps, 
Billings,  Ledyard,  Dobell,  Gordon,  Cochrane,  Erman, 
Cotterill,  and  Hill. 

Strahlenberg  was  a  Swedish  officer,  who,  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  18th  century,  was  banished  for  13  years  to 
Siberia.  He  collected  a  vast  amount  of  information  con- 
cerning the  country  generally,  and  compiled  polyglot 
tables  of  aboriginal  languages,  and  amongst  them  that  of 
the  Yakutes  inhabiting  the  valley  of  the  Lena,  of  whose 
Pagan  condition  he  gives  many  illustrations. 

M.  De  Lesseps  was  French  Consul  and  interpreter  to 
Count  de  la  Pe rouse,  the  well-known  circumnavigator. 
De  Lesseps  entered  the  country  at  Kamchatka  in  1788, 
and  wrote  an  account  of  his  travels  across  Siberia  and 
Europe  to  Paris. 

Captain  Billings  was  an  Englishman,  who,  after  sailing 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


411 


with  the  celebrated  Captain  Cook,  was  employed  by  the 
Empress  Catharine  II.  to  make  discoveries  on  the  north- 
east coast  of  Siberia,  and  among  the  islands  in  the  East- 
ern Ocean  stretching  to  the  American  coast.  For  this 

o 

purpose  he  proceeded  to  north-east  Siberia  in  1785,  sailed 
down  the  river  Kolima,  explored  a  portion  of  the  country 
eastward,  and  then  returned  by  way  of  Yakoutsk. 

Another  of  Captain  Cook's  officers,  John  Ledyard,  had 


YAKUTE  AND  REINDEER. 


the  most  romantic  enthusiasm  for  adventure,  perhaps,  of 
any  man  of  his  time.  He  conceived  the  project  of  trav- 
elling across  Europe,  Asia,  and  America  as  far  as  possible 
on  foot,  and  to  this  end  he  set  out  from  London  with 
about  £50  only  in  his  pockets.  He  reached  Yakoutsk, 
where  he  met  with  Captain  Billings,  and  with  him  was 
hoping  to  proceed  to  America,  when,  by  order  of  the 
Russian  Court,  Ledyard  was  arrested  on  suspicion  of  be- 
ing a  French  spy,  and  was  taken  off  to  Moscow. 

Another  journey  across  Northern  Asia  was  made  after 
the  time  of  Billings  by  Peter  Dobell,  a  counsellor  of  the 


412  ttCSSlAX  X1II1LISM  AND 

Court  of  His  Imperial  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  Russia. 
Dobell  landed  in  Kamchatka  in  1812,  and  from  thence 
proceeded  overland  to  Europe. 

The  most  remarkable  of  these  adventurers  was  an  Eng- 
lishman named  John  Dundas  Cochrane,  a  captain  in  the 
Royal  Navy,  who,  in  1820,  proposed  to  the  Lords  Commis- 
sioners of  the  Admiralty  that  they  should  give  their  sanc- 
tion and  countenance  to  his  undertaking  alone  a  journey 
into  the  interior  of  Africa,  with  a  view  to  ascertaining  the 
course  and  determination  of  the  river  Niger.  This  they 
declined,  whereupon  he  procured  two  years'  leave  of  ab- 
sence, and  resolved  to  attempt  "  a  walking  tour  "  round 
the  globe,  as  nearly  as  could  be  done  by  land,  crossing 
from  Northern  Asia  to  America  at  Behring's  Straits,  his 
leading  object  being  to  trace  the  shores  of  the  Polar  Sea 
along  America  by  land,  as  Captain  Parry  was  at  the  time 
attempting  it  by  sea.  Accordingly  he  left  London  with 
his  knapsack,  crossed  the  Channel  to  Dieppe,  and  then 
set  out.  This  gentleman  was  endowed  with  an  unbounded 
reliance  upon  his  own  individual  exertions,  and  his  knowl- 
edge of  man  when  unfettered  by  the  frailties  and  mis- 
conduct of  others.  One  man,  he  said,  might  go  any- 
where he  chose,  fearlessly  and  alone,  and  as  safely  trust 
himself  in  the  hands  of  savages  as  among  his  own 

D  O 

friends.  His  favorite  dictum  was  that  an  individual 
might  travel  throughout  the  Russian  empire,  except  in 
the  civilized  parts  between  the  capitals,  so  long  as  his 
conduct  was  becoming,  without  necessaries  failing  him. 
He  put  his  principle  rather  severely  to  the  test,  and  it 
must  be  allowed  that  he  did  so  with  very  general  success, 
for  he  states  that  in  travelling  from  Moscow  to  Irkoutsk 
(3,000  miles  by  his  route)  he  spent  less  than  a  guinea. 
From  Irkoutsk  he  descended  the  Lena  to  Yakoutsk,  from 
whence,  accompanied  by  a  single  Cossack,  he  penetrated 


EXILE  LIFE  i:ST  SIBERIA.  413 

in  a  north-easterly  direction  almost  to  the  shores  of  the 
Ice  Sea  at  Nijni  Kolimsk,  where,  having  altered  his 
plans,  he  turned  back  by  a  most  difficult  route  to  Okh- 
otsk. From  this  place  he  sailed  to  Kamchatka,  and  mar- 
ried a  native,  whom  he  brought  by  sea  back  to  Okhotsk, 
and  then  in  winter  crossed  the  Aldan  mountains  to  Yak- 
outsk,  whence  the  happy  pair  proceeded  to  Irkoutsk,  and  at 
length  reached  England.  For  enterprise  and  bravery 
this  captain,  I  take  it,  easily  bears  off  the  palm  from  all 
Siberian  travellers. 

The  writer  who  has  added  most,  perhaps,  to  our  scien- 
tific knowledge  of  the  valley  of  the  Lena  is  M.  Adolph 
Erman,  who  crossed  Siberia  in  1828,  in  conjunction, 
though  not  in  company,  with  Professor  Hansteen,  the 
first  professor  at  the  Magnetic  Observatory  at  Christi- 
ania,  in  Norway,  and  famous  for  his  researches  in  terres- 
trial magnetism.  They  both  travelled  for  the  purpose  of 
making  magnetic  and  other  observations  ;  but,  on  arriv- 
ing at  Irkoutsk,  Professor  Hansteen  returned  to  Europe, 
whilst  Erman  continued  down  the  Lena  to  Yakoutsk, 
crossed  to  the  Sea  of  Okhotsk,  and  so  continued  round 
the- world. 

Later  on,  one  more  Englishman  has  reached  the  Pacific 
by  the  way  of  the  Lena,  namely,  Mr.  S.  S.  Hill,  who 
did  soin  1848,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  he  may,  for 
some  time,  be  the  last  of  the  intrepid  travellers  who 
have  accomplished  this  feat,  since  the  Amooris  now  open 
to  the  Russians,  and  presents  a  far  easier  way  of  crossing 
the  continent. 

To  follow  the  older  route,  the  first  portion  had  to  be 
traversed  by  post  vehicles  from  Irkoutsk,  a  distance  of 
160  miles  in  a  north-easterly  direction.  The  road 
crosses  the  water-parting  of  the  Lena  basin  at  or  near 
the  station  Khogotskaya,  which  is  about  90  geographical 


414 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


miles  from  Irkoutsk.  The  traveller  journeys  through  a 
hilly  country,  where  there  is  abundant  pasture,  and 
where  the  land  is  to  some  extent  cultivated,  to  the  vil- 
lage of  Kachugskoe,  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Lena. 


Here  various  sorts  of  merchandise  are  embarked  in  large 
flat-bottomed  boats,  which  are  floated  down  the  river. 
These  goods  are  exchanged  with  the  natives  for  furs,  the 
boats  at  the  end  of  the  journey  being  broken  up  in  dis- 
tricts where  timber  is  scare,  and  the  furs  brought  back 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  415 

in  smaller  craft.  It  was  in  one  of  these  flat-bottomed  boats 
that  Mr.  Hill  descended  the  stream,  in  company  with  a 
Russian  merchant,  accomplishing  the  journey  to  Ya- 
koutsk  in  twenty-one  days,  with  no  worse  mishaps  by 
water  than  occasionally  being  driven  on  sand  or  mud 
banks,  or  into  a  forest  of  trees,,  all  but  submerged  by  the 
height  of  the  spring  floods. 

Captain  Cochrane  chose  a  more  independent  course. 
Being  furnished  with  a  Cossack,  he  drove  from  Irkoutsk 
to  the  Lena,  and,  having  procured  an  open  canoe  and 
two  men,  paddled  down  the  stream.  Proceeding  day 
and  night,  they  usually  made  from  100  to  120  miles  a 
day,  finding  hospitable  villages  at  intervals  of  from  fif- 
teen to  eighteen  miles,  as  far  as  Kirensk,  and  so  arrived 
on  the  eighth  day  at  Vitimsk.  It  was  now  late  in  the 
autumn,  and  the  ice  began  to  come  down  the  river,  which 
sometimes  compelled  the  natives  to  strip,  and,  up  to  .their 
waists  in  water,  to  track  the  boat,  and  this  with  the  ther- 
mometer below  freezing-point.  At  length  the  captain, 
in  consequence  of  the  difficulties  of  boating,  was  requested 
at  one  of  the  villages  to  proceed  on  horseback,  which  he 
did,  and,  being  unable  at  the  next  station  to  get  either 
horses  or  boat,  he  had  to  shoulder  his  knapsack  and 
walk  ;  and  so,  by  means  of  walking,  riding,  and  paddling, 
he  reached  Olekminsk.  From  thence  to  Yakoutsk  is 
about  400  miles,  which,  excepting  the  two  last  stages,  the 
captain  completed  in  a  canoe,  arriving  on  the  6th  of  Octo- 
ber. The  weather  was  cold,  snow  was  falling,  and  on 
approaching  Yakoutsk  the  canoe  was  caught  in  the  ice, 
so  that  he  was  compelled  to  make  the  remainder  of  his 
journey  on  foot. 

The  descent  of  the  Upper  Lena  to  Yakoutsk  by  water 
was  undertaken  by  Mr.  Hill  in  spring,  and  by  Captain 


4-1 G  IIUSSIAN  NIHILI&M  AND 

Cochrane  in  autumn,  but  Mr.  Erman  accomplished  it  on 
the  ice  in  winter,  by  a  twenty  days'  sledge  journey  of 
nearly  1,900  miles.  As  he  passed  along  he  observed, 
first  in  the  village  of  Petrovsk,  several  of  the  women 
largely  affected  with  goitre,  and  learned  with  surprise 
that  this  malady,  which  in  Europe  characterises  the 
valleys  of  the  Alps,  is  frequent  on  the  Lena.  As  he  pro- 
ceeded he  found  goitre  in  men  also,  and  asking  an  exile 
at  Turutsk,  who  appeared  the  only  healthy  person  in  the 
place,  how  he  had  protected  himself  from  goitre,  was 
told  that  adults  arriving  from  Europe  were  never  attacked 
by  the  disease,  but  that  the  goitre  was  born  with  children 
of  the  district,  and  grew  up  with  them.  Medical  men  in 
Switzerland  say  that  goitre  proceeds  from  deposits  in 
chemical  combination,  washed  down  by  mountain  streams 
that  supply  the  inhabitants  of  the  neighborhood  with 
drinking  water,  and  that  it  attacks  children  on  account 
of  their  mucous  membranes  being  very  tender  and  easily 
distended.  Mr.  Erman  inquired  carefully,  as  he  went  on, 
respecting  the  prevalency  of  goitre,  and  having  made 
barometrical  and  other  observations  along  the  way,  he 
came  at  length  to  the  conclusion  that  the  disease  was 
traceable,  in  part,  to  the  formation  and  altitude  of  vari- 
ous places  along  the  valley  of  the  river,  where  the  air, 
being  confined,  is,  in  summer,  heated  to  an  extraordinary 
degree,  and  loaded  with  moisture. 

With  regard  to  the  stream  of  the  Upper  Lena,  its  head- 
waters have  their  sources  spread  out  for  200  geographic 
cal  miles  along  the  counter  slopes  of  the  hills  that  form 
the  western  bank  of  Lake  Baikal,  and  the  main  stream 
rises  within  seven  miles  of  the  lake. 

At  Kachugskoe,  about  GO  geographical  miles  from  the 
Baikal,  and  not  less  than  75  geographical  miles  in  a 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  417 

straight  line  from  its  source,  the  Lena  measures  about 
the  width  of  East  River,  opposite  New  York.  The 
water,  deep  and  clear,  has  in  spring  a  very  rapid  cur- 
rent, though  Captain  Cochrane  speaks  of  the  rate  lower 
down,  in  autumn,  as  only  1J  or  2  knots  per  hour.  The 
next  station  after  Kachugskoe .  is  Yercholensk,  a  town  of 
1,000  inhabitants,  the  first  of  that  size  on  the  north-east 
of  Irkoutsk,  and  is  the  chief  town  of  the  uyezd  (district). 
After  flowing  500  miles  further  through  a  hilly  country, 
with  high  banks  always  on  one  and  sometimes  on  both 
sides,  on  which  are  35  post-stations  and  more  villages, 
the  river  passes  Kirensk,  which  again  is  the  chief  town 
of  an  uyezd,  and  has  a  population  of  800.  Here  cul- 
tivation practically  ceases,  except  for  vegetables.  At 
this  point,  too,  the  river  receives  on  its  right  the  Kirenga, 
which  has  run  nearly  as  long  a  course  as  the  Lena.  The 
stream  thus  enlarged  now  flows  on  for  300  miles  more  to 
Yitimsk,  where  it  is  joined  by  its  second  great  tributary, 
the  Yitim,  from  the  mountains  east  of  Lake  Baikal.  An- 
other stretch  of  460  miles,  through  a  country  still  hilly, 
but  with  villages  less  frequent,  brings  the  traveller  to 
Olekminsk,  the  capital  of  another  uyezd,  a  town  of  500 
inhabitants  ;  there  the  Lena  receives  from  the  south  the 
Olekma,  which  rises  near  the  Amoor  river.  It  then  con- 
tinues for  400  miles  through  a  sparsely-populated  dis- 
trict, till  it  reaches  Yakoutsk,  where  it  is  4  miles  wide 
in  summer,  and  2|  in  winter,  the  river  being  usually 
frozen  about  the  1st  of  October,  and  not  free  from  ice 
till  about  May  25th. 

Hitherto  the  course  of  the  river  has  been  to  the  north- 
east, but  at  Yakoutsk  the  stream  makes  a  bend  and  runs 
due  north,  receiving  on  its  right,  100  miles  below  Yak- 
outsk, one  of  its  largest  tributaries,  the  Aldan,  which 
rises  in  the  Stanovoi  range  bordering  on  the  Sea  of  Okh- 


418  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

otsk.  Yakoutsk  is  only  270  feet  above  the  sea,  and  the 
current  of  the  river  henceforth  is  sluggish.  About  50 
miles  further  the  Lena  receives  its  largest  tributary  from 
the  left,  the  Vilui,  and  then  proceeds  majestically  through 
a  flat  country  with  an  enormous  body  of  water  to  the 
Arctic  Ocean,  into  which  it  enters  among  a  delta  of 
islands  formed  of  the  debris  brought  down  by  the  river. 

In  the  region  of  the  Lower  Lena,  and  to  the  west- 
ward, have  been  found  the  remains  of  a  huge  rhinoce- 
ros, and  an  elephant  larger  than  any  now  existing — the 
elephas  primigenius,  popularly  called  the  mammoth.  It 
is  so  named  from  the  Russian  mamont,  or  Tartar  mamma 
(the  earth),  because  the  Yakutes  believed  that  this  ani- 
imal  worked  its  way  in  the  earth  like  a  mole  ;  and  a 
Chinese  story  represents  the  mamentova  as  a  rat  of  the 
size  of  an  elephant  which  always  burrowed  underground, 
and  died  on  coming  in  contact  with  the  outer  air.  The 
tusks  of  the  mammoth  are  remarkable  for  exhibiting  a 
double  curve,  first  inwards,  then  outwards,  and  then  in- 
wards again ;  several  able  naturalists  are  of  the  opinion 
that  the  so-called  mammoth  is  of  the  same  species  as  the 
Indian  elephant,  only  much  altered  by  the  change  of  cli- 
matic conditions.  The  Samoyeds  say  that  the  mam- 
moth still  exists  wandering  upon  the  shores  of  the 
Frozen  Ocean,  and  subsisting  on  dead  bodies  thrown  up 
by  the  surf.  As  for  the  rhinoceros,  they  say  it  was  a 
gigantic  bird,  and  the  horns  which  the  ivory-merchants 
purchase  were  its  talons.  Their  legends  tell  of  fearful 
combats  between  their  ancestors  and  this  enormous 
winged  animal. 

A  trade  in  mammoth  ivory  has  been  carried  on  for 
hundreds  of  years  between  the  tribes  of  Northern  Asia 
and  the  Chinese  ;  but  it  was  a  long  time  before  European 
naturalists  took  a  marked  interest  in  the  evidence  of  an 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  419 

extinct  order  of  animals  which  these  remains  undeniably 
recorded.  The  Siberian  mammoth  agrees  exactly  with 
the  specimens  unearthed  in  various  parts  of  England,  es- 
pecially at  Ilford  in  the  valley  of  the  Thames,  near  Lon- 
don, on  the  coast  of  Norfolk  ;  but  whereas  on  European 
soil  there  remain  but  fragments  of  the  skeleton,  there 
have  been  found  in  Siberia  bones  of  the  rhinoceros  and 
mammoth  covered  with  pieces  of  flesh  and  skin.  These 
discoveries  date  back  more  than  a  century. 

In  December,  1771,  a  party  of  Yakutes  hunting  on  the 
Vilui,  near  its  junction  with  the  Lower  Lena,  discovered 
an  unknown  animal  half-buried  in  the  sand,  but  still  re- 
taining its  flesh,  covered  with  a  thick  skin.  The  carcass 
was  too  much  decomposed  to  allow  of  more  than  the 
head  and  two  feet  being  forwarded  to  Irkoutsk  ;  but  they 
were  seen  by  the  great  traveller  and  naturalist,  Peter 
Simon  Pallas,  who  pronounced  the  animal  a  rhinoceros, 
not  particularly  large  of  its  kind,  which  might  perchance 
have  been  born  in  Central  Asia. 

In  the  year  1799  a  bank  of  frozen  earth  near  the  mouth 
of  the  Lena  broke  away,  and  revealed  to  a  Tunguse, 
named  Schumachoff,  the  body  of  a  mammoth.  Hair, 
skin,  flesh  and  all  had  been  preserved  by  the  frost ;  and 
seven  years  later  Mr.  Adams,  of  the  Petersburg  Academy , 
hearing  of  the  discovery  at  Yakoutsk,  visited  the  spot. 
He  found,  however,  that  the  greater  part  of  the  flesh  had 
been  eaten  by  wild  animals  and  the  dogs  of  the  natives, 
though  the  eyes  and  brains  remained.  The  entire  car- 
cass measured  9  feet  4  inches  high,  and  16  feet  4  inches 
from  the  point  of  the  nose  to  the  end  of  the  tail,  without 
including  the  tusks,  which  were  9  feet  6  inches  in  length 
if  measured  along  the  curves.  The  two  tusks  weighed 
360  Ibs.,  and  the  head  and  tusks  together  414  Ibs.  The 
skin  was  of  such  extraordinary  weight  that  ten  persons 


420  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

found  great  difficulty  in  carrying  it.  About  40  Ibs.  of 
hair,  too,  were  collected,  though  much  more  of  this  was 
trodden  into  the  sand  by  the  feet  of  bears  which  had 
eaten  the  flesh.  This  skeleton  is  now  in  the  Museum  of 
the  Academy  at  Petersburg,  where  I  examined  it  during 
my  visit  to  the  city  in  October,  1882. 

Again,  in  1843,  M.  Middendorf  found  a  mammoth  on 
the  Taz,  between  the  Obi  and  the  Yenesei,  with  some  of 
the  flesh  in  so  perfect  a  condition  that  it  was  found  possi- 
ble to  remove  the  ball  of  the  eye,  which  is  preserved  in 
the  Museum  at  Moscow. 

In  1865  the  captain  of  a  Yenesei  steamer  by  chance 
learned  that  some  natives  had  discovered  the  preserved 
remains  of  a  mammoth  in  latitude  67°,  about  100  versts 
west  of  the  river.  Intelligence  was  sent  to  Petersburg, 
and  Dr.  Schmidt  was  commissioned  to  go  and  examine 
into  the  matter.  Accordingly  he  proceeded  down  the 
Yenesei  to  Turukhansk,  and  thence  to  the  landing-place 
nearest  the  mammoth  deposit,  hoping  to  obtain  the  ani- 
mal's stomach,  and,  from  the  character  of  the  leaves 
within,  infer  the  creature's  habitat,  since  it  is  known  that 
the  beast  lived  upon  vegetable  food,  but  of  what  exact 
character  no  one  has  yet  determined.  Unfortunately  the 
stomach  was  wanting. 

In  examining,  under  the  microscope,  fragments  of  vege- 
table food  picked  out  of  the  grooves  of  the  molar  teeth 
of  the  Siberian  rhinoceros  at  Irkoutsk,  naturalists  have 
recognized  fibres  of  the  pitch-pine,  larch,  birch,  and  wil- 
low, resembling  those  of  trees  of  the  same  kind  which 
still  grow  in  Southern  Siberia.  This  seems  to  confirm 
the  opinion,  expressed  long  ago,  that  the  rhinoceros  and 
other  large  pachyderms  found  in  the  alluvial  soil  of  the 
north  used  to  inhabit  Middle  Siberia,  south  of  the  ex- 
treme northern  regions  where  their  skeletons  are  now 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 

found ;  but  Mr.  Knox,  who  travelled  for  some  distance 
with  Schmidt  on  his  return  journey,  says  that  the  doctor 
estimated  that  the  animal  had  been  frozen  many  thou- 
sands of  years,  and  that  his  natural  dwelling-place- was  in 
the  north,  at  a  period  when  perhaps  the  Arctic  regions 
were  warmer  than  they  now  are.  Covered  with  long 
hair,  it  could  certainly  resist  an  Arctic  climate  ;  but  how 
on  the  tundras  of  the  north  could  the  animal  have  found 
the  foliage  of  tress  necessary  for  its  subsistence?  Must 
we  conclude  that  formerly  the  country  was  wooded,  or 
that  the  mammoth  did  not  live  where  its  skeletons  are 
now  found,  but  further  south,  whence  its  carcase  has 
been  carried  northward  by  rivers,  and  frozen  into  the 
soil?  These  are  questions  debated  among  geologists, 
and  still  awaiting  solution. 

The  fact,  however,  remains,  that  mammoth  ivory  is 
still  an  important  branch  of  native  commerce,  and  all 
travellers  bear  witness  to  the  quantities  of  fossil  bones 
found  throughout  the  frozen  regions  of  Siberia.  It  has 
been  suggested  that  the  abundant  supplies  of  ivory  which 
were  at  the  command  of  the  ancient  Greek  sculptors  came 
by  way  of  the  Black  Sea  from  the  Siberian  deposits.  So 
far  back  as  the  time  of  Captain  Billings,  Martin  Sauer, 
his  secretary,  tells  us  of  one  of  the  Arctic  islands  near 
the  Siberian  mainland,  that  "  it  is  a  mixture  of  sand  and 
ice,  so  that  when  the  thaw  sets  in  and  its  banks  begin  to 
fall,  many  mammoth  bones  are  found,  and  that  all  the 
isle  is  formed  of  the  bones  of  this  extraordinary  animal." 
This  account  is  to  some  extent  corroborated  by  Figuier, 
who  tells  us  that  New  Siberia  and  the  Isle  Liakov  are  for 
the  most  part  only  an  agglomeration  of  sand,  ice,  and 
elephants'  teeth  ;  and  at  every  tempest  the  sea  casts  ashore 
new  quantities  of  mammoths'  tusks.  Eechts  speaks  of 
an  annual  find  of  fifteen  tons  of  mammoth  ivory,  repre- 


422  RUSSIAN"  NIHILISM  AXD 

senting  about  200  mammoths  ;  and,  about  1840,  Midden- 
dorf  estimated  the  number  of  mammoths  discovered  up 
to  that  time  at  20,000. 

Each  year,  in  early  summer,  fishermen's  barques  direct 
their  course  to  the  New  Siberian  group,  to  the  "isles  of 
bones-"  and,  during  winter,  caravans  drawn  by  dogs 
take  the  same  route,  and  return  charged  with  tusks  of 
the  mammoth,  each  weighing  from  150  pounds  to  200 
pounds.  The  fossil  ivory  thus  obtained  is  imported  into 
China  and  Europe,  and  is  used  for  the  same  purposes  as 
the  ordinary  ivory  of  the  elephant  and  hippopotamus. 

We  cannot  leave  the  Lower  Lena  and  the  neighboring 
shores  of  the  Arctic  Ocean  without  alluding  to  the  won- 
derful sight  those  shores  witnessed  in  1878,  for  the  first 
time  in  the  history  of  the  world.  It  was  no  less  a  sight 
than  that  of  two  steam  vessels  that  had  ploughed  their 
way  from  Europe  round  Cape  Cheliuskin.  One  of  them 
was  the  Vega,  in  which  was  Professor  Nordenskjold, 
whose  intention  had  been  to  anchor  off  the  mouth  of  the 
Lena,  but  a  favorable  wind  and  an  open  sea  offered  so 
splendid  an  opportunity  of  continuing  his  voyage  that  he 
did  not  neglect  it.  He  sailed  away,  therefore,  on  the 
28th  of  August,  direct  for  Fadievskoi,  one  of  the  New 
Siberian  islands,  where  he  intended  to  remain  some  days, 
and  to  examine  scientifically  the  remains  of  mammoths, 
rhinoceri,  horses,  aurochs,  bisons,  sheep,  etc.,  with 
which  these  islands  are  said  to  be  covered.  The  Vega 
made  excellent  progress,  but  though  on  the  30th,  Liakov 
Island  was  reached,  the  professor  was  unable  to  land, 
owing  to  the  rotten  ice  which  surrounded  it,  and  the  dan- 
ger to  which  the  vessel  would  have  been  exposed  in  case 
of  a  storm  in  such  shallow  water. 

After  the  Vega  with  Nordenskjold  on  board,  had  left 
its  sister  ship  the  Lena,  the  latter  vessel,  under  the  com- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  423 

mand  of  Captain  Johannesen,  started  to  ascend  the  river 
of  its  own  name.  A  pilot  had  been  engaged  to  descend 
the  river  and  await  the  arrival  of  the  Lena,  but  as 
neither  he  nor  his  signals  were  visible,  the  captain,  after 
considerable  difficulty,  from  the  shallowncss  of  the 
water,  made  his  way  through  the  delta,  and  on  the  7th  of 
September  reached  the  main  stream,  where  the  naviga- 
tion was  less  difficult.  Yakoutsk  was  reached  on  the 
21st  of  September,  dispatches  were  sent  on  to  Irkoutsk, 
and  from  thence  it  was  telegraphed  to  Europe  that  the 
rounding  of  Cape  Cheliuskin  and  the  navigation  of  the 
Lena  by  a  steamer  from  the  Atlantic  had  been  accom- 
plished. 

Since  this  ascent  of  the  Lena,  no  other  vessel  has 
attempted  to  follow  by  way  of  the  Arctic  mouth,  but 
there  are  now  several  steam  crafts  navigating  the  stream 
between  Yakoutsk  and  towns  located  further  south  on  the 
river.  About  the  delta,  where  the  Jeiinnctte  survivors 
landed,  there  is  still  comparatively  little  known,  though 
two  native  tribes,  the  Samoveds  and  Ostjaks,  hunt  every 
year  all  along  the  coast  and  sledge  their  game  on  the 
frozen  Lena  from  near  its  mouth  to  Yakoutsk.  * 


CHAPTER  XXTY. 

THERE  are  a  number  of  mines  worked  by  convict  labor 
which  I  have  not  yet  mentioned,  among  the  more  import- 
ant being  those  at  Kadaya,  Malopatomski,  Klitchku, 
Algatche,  Akatuya,  Vidinsky,  Nertchinsky  Zavod, 
Chita,  Nertchinsk,  and  Petrovsky  Zavod.  Of  these  the 

*  For  much  of  the  information  here  given  concerning  the  Lena,  I  am  in- 
debted to  Mr.  Lansdell's  "Through  Siberia." 


424 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBEUIA.  425 

Nertchinsk  mines  deserve  special  mention,  because  of 
their  magnitude  and  the  reputation  which  they  bear.  Of 
this  place  of  labor  and  torment  the  author  of  "  The  Rus- 
sians of  To-day"  writes  (p.  216):  "The  miners  are 
supposed  to  be  the  worst  offenders,  and  their  punishment 
is  tantamount  to  death  by  slow  tortune  ;  for  it  is  certain 
to  kill  them  in  ten  years,  and  ruins  their  health  long  be- 
fore that  time.  If  the  convict  have  money  or  influential 
friends,  he  had  better  use  the  time  between  his  sentence 
and  transportation  in  buying  a  warrant  which  consigns 
him  to  the  lighter  kinds  of  labor  above  ground,  otherwise 
he  will  inevitably  be  sent  under  earth,  and  never  again 
see  the  sky  until  be  is  hauled  up  to  die  in  an  infirmary." 
Again,  a  distinguished  German  writer,  Robert  Lemke, 
visited  several  mines  in  Siberia  with  an  official  legitima- 
tion from  the  Russian  Government,  among  the  mines  so 
visited  beinj?  those  at  Nertchinsk.  Of  the  treatment  ac- 

o 

corded  to  convicts,  in  an  article  contributed  to  the  Con- 
temporary Review,  September,  1879,  Mr.  Lcmke  says : 
"Entering  a  room  (in  the  mine)  of  considerable  extent,  but 
which  was  scarcely  a  man's  height,  and  which  was  dimly 
lit  by  an  oil  lamp,  I  asked,  'where  are  we?'  'In  the 
sleeping  room  of  the  condemned  !  Formerly  it  was  a  gal- 
lery of  the  mine,  now  it  serves  as  a  shelter !'  I  shud- 
dered. This  subterranean  sepulchre,  lit  by  neither  sun 
nor  moon,  was  called  a  sleeping  room.  Alcove-like  cells 
were  hewn  in  the  rock  ;  here,  on  a  couch  of  damp,  half- 
rotten  straw,  covered  with  a  sack-cloth,  the  unfortunate 
sufferers  were  to  repose  from  the  day's  hard  work.  Over 
each  cell  a  cramp  iron  was  fixed,  wherewith  to  lock  up 
the  prisoners  like  ferocious  dogs.  No  door,  no  window 
anywhere. 

"  Conducted   through    another  passage,  where  a  few 
lamps  were  placed,  and  whose  end  was  also  barred  by  an 


4:26  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

iron  gate,  I  came  to  a  large  vault,  partly  lit.  This  was 
the  mine.  A  deafening  noise  of  pickaxes  and  hammers 
grated  on  my  ears.  Here  I  saw  hundreds  of  wretched 
figures,  with  shaggy  beards,  sickly  faces,  reddened  eyes, 
clad  in  tatters — some  of  them  barefoot,  others  in  sandals, 
and  all  fettered  with  heavy  foot  chains.  No  songs,  no 
whistling ;  now  and  then  they  shyly  glanced  at  me  and 
my  guide." 

Mr.  Lemke  also  writes  that  in  response  to  an  inquiry 
which  he  made  about  the  time  allowed  convicts  to  rest, 
the  officer  excitedly  said  :  "  Rest !  Convicts  must  always 
labor.  There  is  no  rest  for  them  ;  they  are  condemned  to 
perpetual  forced  labor,  and  he  who  once  enters  the  mine 
rarely  leaves  it." 

I  had  read  these  statements  before  leaving  America,  and 
now,  while  in  a  position  to  test  their  accuracy,  I  deter- 
mined to  profit  by  the  advantage.  Mr.  Gunsollis  was 
still  with  me,  and  upon  communicating  my  desire  to  him, 
he  at  once  set  about  to  assist  me  in  finding  some  one  who 
was  familiar  with  the  treatment  of  convicts  at  Nertchinsk. 
We  had  not  long  to  search,  for  in  a  short  time  my  friend 
was  directed  to  a  merchant  whose  dvornik — house  por- 
ter— had  been  an  exile  at  the  noted  mines  for  several 
years.  This  fellow,  however,  appeared  very  stupid,  so 
that  I  did  not  like  to  trust  his  statement,  from  which 
dilemma  I  was  fortunately  relieved  by  his  referring  me  to 
at  least  seven  others  in  the  city  who  had  served  terms  of 
hard  labor  at  Nertchinsk.  By  his  directions  I  found  six 
of  these,  three  of  whom  were  intelligent  enough  to  com- 
prehend my  motives,  while  the  other  three  were  so  suspi- 
cious of  me  that  they  could  not  be  induced  to  talk, 

From  the  three  with  whom  I  conversed  freely  much 
valuable  information  was  obtained,  which  so  thoroughly 
accords  with  all  other  descriptions  of  the  place  that  I 


428  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANI> 

present  it  here,  fully  assured  that  it  contains  no  misrep- 
resentations. Of  the  three,  one  had  served  eight  years 
at  Nertchinsk  for  participation  in  the  Polish  riots  of  1863  ; 
another  had  spent  ten  years  at  hard  labor  for  an  alleged 
connection  with  Nihilist  rioters  at  Karkoff,  which,  how- 
ever, he  denied,  and  the  other  had  served  twelve  years  for 
burning  Government  property  at  YVirasloff.  Each,  of 
course,  had  a  long  story  of  justification,  but  as  this 
might  be  expected  from  every  convict,  I  did  not  rely  on 
their  defensive  statements,  lest  they  should  be  colored  by 
excuses  whicn  had  no  existence  in  fact.  But  as  to  the 
treatment  of  themselves,  and  others  under  their  obser- 
vation at  Nertchinsk,  they  were  qualified  to  speak  truth- 
fully. 

The  mines  at  Nertchinsk  are  entered  through  an  exca- 
vation made  near  the  base  of  a  mountain  ;  they  are  nearly 
three  hundred  feet  in  depth,  and,  owing  to  the  sup- 
posed existence  of  volcanic  fires  near  the  tunnels, 
are  very  warm.  Into  these  tunnels,  which  ramify 
a  large  district,  generally  five  hundred  convicts  are 
engaged  mining  silver ;  about  one-fourth  of  this  num- 
ber are  never  permitted  to  appear  above  ground ;  that 
is,  while  all  are  doomed  to  hard  labor,  the  portion 
referred  to,  having  incurred  the  prejudice  of  those  hav- 
ing them  in  charge,  are  subjected  to  a  treatment  not  con- 
templated in  their  sentences.  These  unfortunates  are 
not  only  weighted  with  heavy  manacles,  their  arms,  necks 
and  ankles  mutilated  by  the  galling,  rasping  irons  that 
are  never  removed,  but  their  tasks  are  allotted  greatly 
out  of  proportion  to  their  ability,  and  yet  they  must  per- 
form them  or  be  placed  under  such  severe  discipline  as 
few  can  long  endure. 

It  is  no  excuse  if  these  men  become  ill  or  exhausted, 
they  work  nevertheless,  and  that  too,  with  the  same  en- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  429 

ergy  as  though  they  were  well  and  able-bodied.  Those 
who  trundle  wheel-barrows  are  chained  to  their  imple- 
ment ;  those  who  wield  the  pick  are  generally  chained  to 
a  rock  beside  their  work,  and  so  no  one  can  leave  for 
an  instant  the  place  where  he  is  set  to  labor.  In  this 
mine  there  is  a  gallery  which  is  used  only  for  punish- 
ment ;  it  is  provided  with  rings  made  fast  in  the  rock, 
and  also  with  a  large  beam  set  at  an  angle  of  thirty-five 
or  forty  degrees,  similar  to  that  used  in  some  of  our  pen- 
itentiaries, on  which  to  punish  convicts,  and  called  the 
"Widow."  When  an  offender  becomes  a  subject  for 
punishment  he  is  taken  into  this  gallery  and  either  tied 
up  by  his  wrists  to  the  rings,  or  made  to  lie  face  down- 
ward on  the  beam,  to  which  he  is  made  fast  by  binding 
his  wrists  and  ankles  underneath.  The  scorpion  is  very 
frequently  used  upon  those  who  are  bound  to  the  beam  ; 
from  twenty-five  to  fifty  lashes  are  given  with  this  dread- 
ful instrument,  which  latter  number  will,  nine  times  out 
of  ten,  make  a  raving  maniac  of  the  victim.  Those  tied 
to  the  rings  receive  from  one  hundred  to  two  hundred 
strokes  of  the  knout,  which  lacerate  the  back  in  a  manner 
no  one  can  possibly  describe ;  the  use  of  both  these  in- 
struments of  punishment  is  very  of  ten  attended  with  fatal 
results. 

The  shocking  brutality  of  those  who  apply  such,  os- 
tensibly, corrective  means  is  further  illustrated  by  their 
refusal  to  care  for  their  victims  after  the  unmerciful  pun- 
ishment is  awarded.  There  is  no  compassionate  treat- 
ment given  the  victims ;  taken  from  the  gallery,  with 
gashed  and  bleeding  backs,  their  bodies  quivering  with 
agony,  and  legs  so  enfeebled  that  they  frequently  refuse 
support,  the  poor  wretches  are  driven,  or  dragged,  back  to 
resume  their  tasks.  Many  of  these  sufferers  return  with 
disordered  minds,  crazed  from  pain,  yet  their  idiotic  ut- 


430  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

terances  often  cause  them  to  be  led  again  to  the  gallery 
for  a  double  portion  of  punishment,  or  to  be  struck  dead 
by  the  ferocious  guard.  For  beds  on  which  to  lay  their 
wounded  bodies  these  poor  convicts  have  only  the  ragged 
surface  of  the  mine  in  which  they  work  ;  nothing  but  rocks 
for  couch,  pillow  or  coverlet;  nothing  with  which  to  bind 
their  sores  or  alleviate  their  pains  ;  enforced  neglect  causes 
a  suppuration  of  the  wounds,  which,  aggravated  and  poi- 
soned by  perspiration,  grow  more  severe  until  fever  suc- 
ceeds, delirium  is  induced,  and  they  fall  victims  indeed, 
but  to  secure  at  last  relief  and  rest. 

Constant  labor  in  the  mines,  without  for  one  moment 
being  permitted  to  see  the  blessed  light  of  day,  shut 
down  in  the  damp  cavern  to  breathe  heated  metalic  fumes, 
produces  an  effect  upon  the  convict  which  must  be  seen  to 
be  understood.  The  first  changes  noticeable,  strange 
enough,  are  found  in  the  hair,  which  becomes  coarse, 
harsh  and  straggling  ;  next  the  features  assume  a  pale  cast, 
which  afterwards  change  to  a  dull,  ashen  color ;  the 
eyes  then  lose  all  lustre,  and  begin  to  sink ;  the  skin 
shrinks  on  the  cheeks,  and  the  flesh  dries  up  until, 
after  some  years  of  labor,  the  whole  frame  seems  to 
grow  rickety,  the  muscles  become  atrophied  and  the  voice 
is  like  a  wheezy  whisper  ;  the  lips  are  thin  as  paper,  and 
the  fingers  are  grown  to  double  length  by  reason  of  the 
flesh  drying  up  between  them.  Such  specter-like  figures 
seen  through  the  flickering  light  of  smoking  torches, 
which  throw  dancing  shadows  on  the  trickling  tunnels' 
sides,  are  wierdly  grotesque,  arousing  in  the  observer  a 
conception  of  those  nether  regions  peopled  by  tormented 
souls  and  imps  of  iniquity ;  it  is  indeed  a  place  of  tor- 
ment, established  and  maintained  in  that  spirit  which  gave 
expression  to  the  poetic,  though  none  the  less  existent 
fact :  ' '  Ma  1 1 '  s  i  nhum  a  n  ity  t  o  in  a  n ,  m  ak  e  s  c  <  >  u  n  t 1  e  ss  t  h  o  u- 
sands  mourn/' 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  433 

Were  made  about  Salem, Massachusetts,  in  the  last  century, 
and  conviction  almost  invariably  resulted.  The  punish- 
ment provided  for  such  cases  consisted  in  branding,  with 
a  red  hot  iron,  upon  the  forehead  and  abdomen,  a  figure 
of  the  cross.  This  was  supposed  to  spiritualize  the  vic- 
tim, and  also  to  have  a  holy  influence  upon  any  offspring 
which  she  might  thereafter  bear.  The  application  of  the 
brand  was  accompanied  with  the  most  excruciating  suffer- 
ing, it  being  deemed  essential  to  the  potency  of  the  coun- 
ter-charm, to  burn  deeply  into  the  flesh  that  the  cross 
might  ever  appear  most  conspicuous. 

But  this  barbaric  custom  is  no  longer  practiced  in  any 
part  of  Siberia,  while  the  treatment  of  female  convicts 
generally  is  now  fairly  considerate,  though  not  entirely 
humane.  So  do  we  have  to  record  the  fact,  already  men- 
tioned, that  a  reward  is  no  longer  placed  upon  the  heads 
of  escaping  convicts,  though  there  is  no  penalty  provided 
for  the  wilful  murder  of  exiles,  either  in  or  out  of  prison. 
The  spirit  of  the  ago  is  very  slowly,  but  none  the  less 
certainly,  extending  towards  Siberia,  and  let  us  hope  it 
may  completely  possess  thai:  eountiy  ere  long. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

HAVING  pretty  fully  informed  myself  on  the  several  sub- 
jects appertaining  to  Siberian  life,  on  the  20th  of  Septem- 
ber I  took  leave  (if  my  now  acquaintances  at  Irkoutsk  and 
prepared  for  the  return  jouniey,  with  Schlueter  still  acting 
as  my  guide.  There  was  considerable  snow  falling  and 
already  on  the  ground,  so  adopting  the  most  expeditious 
mode  of  travelling  we  engaged  a  poxt-troika  and  yem- 
stuhik,  \vitli  which  vyestarted  PprKrasuoiarsk.  Up  to  this. 


434 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


time  I   had  carefully  preserved  the  skin  of  the  bear  I 
killed  while  en-route  for  Yeniseisk,  but  it  became  so  trou- 


blesome that,  after  many  wavering  resolutions,  I  finally 
gave  it  to  a  mujik  at  whose  house  we  stopped  to  purchase 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  437) 

milk.  My  tribulations  over  that  skin  were  manifold. 
When  I  first  perceived  the  bear  it  appeared  to  me  of  the 
most  stupendous  size  and  ferocity;  when  fortune  favored 
me  by  directing  the  ball  I  fired  to  a  fatal  spot  andthe  ani- 
mal rolled  over  dead,  it  must  be  admitted  that  I  entertained 
an  opinion  of  myself  which  is  simply  and  utterly  beyond 
description  ;  for  several  minutes  I  felt  great  anxiety  to 
get  back  to  America  for  the  sole  purpose  of  having  my  biog- 
raphy published.  But  when  I  began  to  skin  the  animal  and 
thoroughly  familiarize  myself  with  its  size  and  weapons  for 
.defence,  somehow  it  commenced  to  dwindle  like  a  candle 
lighted  at  both  ends,  or  more  properly  like  an  object 
looked  at  through  the  large  end  of  a  spy-glass.  Actually, 
that  bear  got  so  small  before  we  finished  the  skinning 
that  I  felt  sorry  rny  rashness  had  destroyed  an  animal 
which  I  might  as  well  have  caught  and  made  a  pet  of. 
But  besides  being  very  small,  the  skin  refused  to  dry, 
while  at  every  exposure  it  would  freeze  in  the  most  un- 
comfortable shapes,  and  take  up  more  room  than  all  our 
other  luggage.  These  several  reasons  I  considered,  at 
length,  quite  sufficient  to  make  me  part  with  the  skin, 
but  I  was  very  sorry  to  see  the  mujik  throw  it  aside  with 
a  look  which  plainly  said:  "Well,  perhaps  it  will  do 
for  the  cats  to  gnaw." 

Upon  reaching  Nijni  Udinsk  we  made  a  short  stop  and 
went  out  to  the  mines,  which  are  nearly  one  mile  from 
the  town  proper.  But  my  visit  was  without  results,  as 
the  chief  officer  was  absent  and  none  of  his  underlings 
would  permit  me  to  descend  into  the  mines. 

Starting  again  on  the  following  day,  we  proceeded  with- 
out interruption  to  Krasnoyarsk,  and  thence  on  to  Tomsk 
without  do1. ay  anywhere  on  the  route.  Everywhere 
tlnTo  seemed  to  bo  plenty  of  snow  except  at  Tomsk, 
where  we  found  the  ground  so  bare  that  I  had  to  discard 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


the  troika  for  a  tumbril.     I  here  decided  to  change  my 
route  and  instead  of  returning  to  Russia  by  the  same  way 


I  had  come,  to  cut  straight  across  to  Omsk  and  take  the 
\ower  route  which  crosses  the  Urals  at  Orenburg.     This, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  437 

road  I  found,  though  not  nearly  so  generally  travelled  as 
that  by  the  way  of  Perm  and  Tobolsk,  was  through  a 
more  fertile  country,  and  the  roads  were  far  better. 

Omsk  is  a  town  of  3, 000  people,  with  nothing  to  com- 
mend it  above  the  smallest  way-station,  unless  it  be  in 
the  matter  of  churches,  which  are  somewhat  finer  than 
those  in  Tieumen.  I  did  not  stop  more  than  two  hours 
in  Omsk,  being  now  anxious  to  conclude  my  investiga- 
tions in  Russia  and  reach  home  before  winter  should  be- 
gin. As  there  were  no  post-stations  upon  which  I  could 
rely  for  conveyance  between  Omsk  and  Orenburg,  I  was 
reduced  to  the  necessity  of  buying  a  tumbril  and  three 
horses,  for  which  I  paid  something  more  than  for  those 
I  purchased  at  Tomsk.  It  was  also  necessary  for  us  to 
hiy  in  a  goodly  store  of  provisions,  as  the  distance  we  had 
now  to  travel  was  about  one  thousand  miles  before  reach- 
ing  the  boundary  of  Russian  civilization.  This  portion 
of  my  trip  through  Siberia  impressed  me  more,  perhaps, 
than  anything  I  saw  or  heard  on  the  convict  route,  for  so 
great  was  the  exposure  induced  from  inclement  weather 
that  the  effects  I  still  keenly  feel,  while  I  was  reduced  in 
weight  nearly  thirty  pounds. 

Schleuter,  besides  being  a  good  guide,  was  a  splendid 
cook,  and  his  services  over  the  camp-fire  had  much  to  do 
in  sustaining  my,  at  times,  flagging  courage,  for  I  can 
assure  the  reader  that  it  is  a  rugged  courage  indeed  that 
can  resist  the  complaints  of  nature  when  incited  by 
freezing  cold,  chilling  rains,  sickness,  and  the  number- 
less annoyances  which  one  might  expect  to  meet  on  so 
long  a  journey,  across  a  wilderness  of  unchangeable  des- 
olation, seven  thousand  miles  from  home. 

At  one  point,  nearPrisnovsk,  we  discovered  a  herd  of 
animals  quite  unlike  any  of  the  brute  creation  I  had  ever 
before  seen  ;  they  were  called  Siberian  Antelope  and,  as 
28 


438  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

I  was  informed,  are  quite  numerous  in  the  western  part 
of  Siberia.  As  it  was  drawing  toward  evening,  I  ordered 
Schleuter  to  stop  and  assist  me  in  trying  to  kill  one  of 
the  animals,  as  we  were  in  need  of  fresh  meat  and,  besides, 
I  wanted  the  adventure.  According  to  my  instructions, 
the  horses  were  unharnessed,  save  their  bridles,  and 
Schleuter  mounting  one  while  1  rode  another,  bareback, 
we  set  out  to  surround  the  antelopes,  which  were  not 
nearly  so  wild  as  the  large  game  on  our  western  plains. 
I  rode  away  to  the  north  some  distance,  where  there  was 
a  small  ravine  in  which  myself  and  horse  could  remain 
quite  out  of  sight  of  the  game,  while  Schleuter  watched 
my  movements  and  at  the  proper  time  made  a  wide  circuit 
and  came  up  leeward  of  the  antelope  which  did  not  take 
fright  until  he  had  approached  within  a  few  rods  of  them. 
Fortunately,  but  as  we  both  anticipated,  they  broke  di- 
rectly for  the  ravine  where  I  was  stationed ;  they  came 
by  me  in  a  gallop,  not  more  than  twenty  steps  away,  and 
with  a  shaking,  buck-ague  aim  I  fired,  once,  twice,  three 
times,  the  last  shot  alone  taking  effect,  breaking  the  hind- 
leg  of  a  large  buck.  Though  disabled,  the  animal  did  not 
surrender,  but  on  three  legs  it  went  cutting  through  the 
tall  grass,  while  I  hastily  mounted  and,  waving  my  hat 
for  Schleuter  to  come  on,  started  in  hot  pursuit.  A  Sibe- 
rian pony  is  great  in  endurance,  though  his  speed  is  hardly 
above  that  of  a  mule's,  but  I  was  now  thoroughly  ex- 
cited, and  with  beating,  kicking  and  otherwise  urging  my 
horse  I  got  enough  speed  out  of  him  to  keep  not  far  behind 
the  wounded  buck.  Thus  we  raced  for  nearly  five  miles 
before  I  could  approach  near  enough  to  make  a  finishing 
shot.  When  the  antelope  was  finally  killed,  we  were 
much  puzzled  how  to  get  it  to  our  tumbril,  as  its  weight 
was  not  less  than  four  hundred  pounds,  I  should  judge. 
But  our  difficulties  were  overcome  by  dressing  the  game 


EXILE  LIFE  13*  SIBERIA. 


439 


440  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

and  then  equally,  dividing  it,  which,  by  the  way,  was  a 
job  of  infinite  tediousness  and  hard  labor,  since  we  had 
nothing  but  pocket-knives  to  work  with  ;  all  our  trouble 
was,  however,  wholly  forgotten  while  feasting  off  the 
delicious  steaks  that  night,  such  meat  as  I  am  sure  can 
be  found  nowhere  else  in  the  world,  unless  Siberian 
Antelope  are  to  be  found  in  other  countries. 

We  had  no  other  exciting  adventure  between  Omsk 
and  Orenburg,  which  latter  place  we  reached  in  fifteen 
days  after  leaving  the  former.  The  Ural  mountains  at 
Orenburg  Pass  are  not  even  so  high  as  the  range  about 
Perm.  So  far  as  my  observations  extended  I  was  sur- 
prised to  find  that  Orenburg  had  not  been  selected  for  the 
railroad  passage  instead  of  Perm,  since  nature  certainly 
favors  the  southern  route.  I  found  in  Orenburg  a  sleepy 
old  town  of  pronounced  Caucasian  characteristics.  Its 
population  embraces  many  Tartars  and  Circassians,  but 
all  are  a  lazy,  happy-go-lucky,  to-morrow  or  next  day 
kind  of  people,  whom  it  is  far  better  to  read  about  in 
history  than  to  mess  with  at  table — in  short,  they  stink. 

My  stay  in  Orenburg  was  very  short,  only  long  enough 
to  sell  my  team  and  take  a  bath.  I  proceeded  on  for 
Nijni  Novgorod  by  the  regular  post-route,  which  leads 
through  Samara,  where  the  Volga  is  crossed.  Samara  is 
noted  for  having  the  longest  railroad  bridge  in  the  world, 
a  structure  erected  by  the  company  that  began  the  con- 
struction of  the  southern  railroad  from  Moscow  through 

o 

Siberia,  as  already  mentioned. 

From  Samara  I  went  on  to  Nijni,  by  steamer,  and 
thence  to  Moscow,  Schleuter  still  remaining  with  me,  as 
I  had  need  for  an  interpreter,  having  decided  to  spend 
two  or  more  days  in  a  serf  village  to  acquaint  myself 
with  the  customs  peculiar  to  Russian  peasantry.  After 
stopping  a  few  hours  at  Moscow  I  took  the  west-bound 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


441 


442  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

train,  which  runs  across  Russia  500  miles  to  Warsaw,  for 
a  large  serf  village  located  near  the  road,  about  forty 
miles  from  Moscow.  I  decided  to  visit  this  place  be- 
cause an  American  £.;-:  '-»inan  from  Philadelphia,  whom 
I  met  at  the  Hotel  Bilk  Tosco\v,  had  travelled  through 
the  village  a  few  days  bei.  -\d  assured  me  of  its  rep- 
resentative character.  The  .^n  at  which  I  stopped 
contained  only  one  or  two  builu.r>gs,  £nd  being  unable  to 
engage  any  kind  of  conveyance  8cia;euf.--jv  and  I  walked 
out  to  the  Serf  village,  which  was  a  joi:,;  two  miles  from 
the  station. 

There  is  nothing  to  which  I  can  compare  a  serf  settle- 
ment so  well  as  to  the  negro  log  cabins  still  found  on  our 
Southern  plantations.  The  buildings  are  nearly  all  alike, 
small,  one  or  two  room  log  huts  having  roofs  of  thatch, 
and  are  built  along* streets  which  seem  to  have  been  regu- 
larly laid  out.  There  are  generally  two  small,  square 
windows  in  each  house,  and  the  floors  are  made  of  hewn 
pine  logs,  same  as  those  used  for  the  walls.  Invariably, 
at  a  short  distance  from  the  village,  is  the  nobleman's 
residence  and  a  chapel  for  religious  worship,  not  always 
near  together,  but  never  more  than  a  half-mile  apart. 
The  nobleman's  house  always  stands  on  an  elevated  posi- 
tion commanding  a  view  of  the  village  and  estate. 
Things  are  very  much  changed  since  the  serfs  were  eman- 
cipated, but  there  are  yet  visible  traces  of  the  relationship 
which  once  existed  between  the  serfs  and  their  master — 
nobleman.  The  glory,  pomp  and  wealth  of  the  nobility 
have  departed  ;  no  longer  are  the  serfs  called  to  their  daily 
labor  by  the  sounding  horn,  nor  do  they  pay  homage  to  or 
work  for  lordly  masters  who  spend  their  years  in  riotous 
living.  The  mansion  still  stands  a  mule  reminder  of 
slavery  days,  but  its  once  proud  owner  is  now  draining 
the  dregs  of  poverty  and  spending  his  influence  in  fo- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  443 

meriting  rebellion  against  the  Government  that  by  a  man- 
date deprived  him  of  both  wealth  and  position.  But 
there  appears  to  be  little  independence  or  prosperity 
among  the  serfs  whose  liberty  came  to  them  in  a  manner 
which  they  have  never  been  quite  able  to  understand. 
The  communal  estates  still  remain  as  in  earlier  days,  the 
villages  are  intact,  and  but  for  the  loitering  indiffer- 
ence of  the  people  we  could  hardly  realize  the  change. 
On  Southern  plantations  the  gregarious  log  cabins  which 
once  sheltered  negro  bondsmen  are  now  empty  and  fallen 
into  decay,  but  though  the  abolition  of  serfdom  was  ac- 
complished before  the  manumission  of  slaves  in  America, 
there  is  very  little  outwardly  to  show  that  the  serf  of 
former  days  is  not  still  a  serf. 

I  went  among  the  peasantry,  who  now  hold  the  term 
"serf"  in  disdain,  and  was  kindly  treated  by  them. 
After  once  assuring  themselves  that  the  object  of  my 
visit  was  to  learn  something  of  their  customs,  they 
showed  me  every  kindness  and  entertained  me  with  a 
generous  hospitality. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

SUPERSTITION  is  nowhere  so  absurdly  general  and  gro- 
tesque as  among  the  Russian  peasantry ;  but  this  is  not 
surprising  when  we  consider  the  fact  that  they  receive  no 
education  whatever ;  a  school  house  to  them  is  only  as  a 
dream  ;  they  are  nurtured  in  a  church  which  recognizes 
modern  day  miracles,  and  are  taught  by  priests  who  are 
the  only  monitors  the  poor  classes  know  ;  that  God  and 
his  saints  spend  their  whole  time  looking  for  a  fitting  oc- 
casion to  do  something  that  may  be  interpreted  as  a  mir- 


444  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

acle.  The  cock  that  crows  in  the  morning  is  reckoned 
us  a  mouth-piece  of  some  old  saint,  and  there  are  certain 
patriarchs  in  each  village  who  take  it  upon  themselves  to 
render  certain  matutinal  calls  of  the  cock  into  decrees 
from  heaven.  Pigeons  are  looked  upon  as  holy  birds, 
for  the  lives  of  which  the  Russians  are  so  regardful  that 
a  severe  punishment  is  provided  for  any  who  would  wan- 
tonly kill  them  ;  in  consequence  of  this  the  whole  country 
is  fairly  filled  with  pigeons,  until  they  are  an  abominable 
nuisance.  Every  peasant  must  have  an  "  icon  "  and  keep  a 
candle  constantly  burning  before  it ;  should  the  candle 
become  exhausted  in  the  night  or  be  extinguished  by  ac- 
cident, the  entire  household  is  at  once  seized  with  alarm  ; 
they  immediately  declare  that  a  prowling  spirit  of  dark- 
ness is  in  the  house,  to  rid  themselves  of  which  they  burn 
certain  kinds  of  herbs  and  perform  long  series  of  strange 
ceremonials.  The  Russians  do  not,  so  far  as  I  could 
learn,  entertain  any  belief  in  faries  or  pixies,  but  they  all 
have  implicit  confidence  in  good  and  evil  spirits,  which 
they  believe  are  the  angels  of  men  and  women  who  have 
died  leaving  something  undone  of  such  serious  nature 
that  they  visit  the  earth  to  attend  to  the  neglected  matter. 
Before  neither  chapel  nor  holy  image  will  a  peasant  pass 
without  devoutly  crossing  himself.  While  in  Moscow  I 
saw  an  amusing  illustration  of  this  devotional  characteris- 
tic :  a  priest  came  riding  by  in  a  carriage,  carrying  in  his 
arms  a  picture  of  St.  Nicholas  (in  his  life  he  was  called 
the  iron-heeled  despot,  but  after  death  his  name  was 
dianged  to  St.  Nicholas)  ;  the  street  was  filled  with  peo- 
ple, and  as  they  saw  the  (un)holy  image  they  all  dropped 
upon  their  knees  and  bent  their  heads  to  the  sidewalk  ;  as 
far  as  my  eyes  could  follow  the  receding  carriage  I  saw 
the  people  dropping  down  in  long  files  like  double  col- 
umns of  an  army  answering  to  a  command.  These  people, 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SiBEIilA.  445 

poor,  ignorant  and  superstitious,  are  hardly  less  serfs 
now  than  before,  because  of  the  slavery  they  are  still 
under  to  the  church.  In  Russia  there  are  more  priests 
than  d:>'rs  and  per  consequence  more  degradation  than 
any  oilier  prevailing  characteristic.  The  priests  are 
divided  into  two  classes,  viz.,  the  white  and  black  clergy  ; 
the  former  are  privileged  to  do  about  as  they  please,  but 
the  latter,  besides  being  prohibited  from  marrying,  do 
not  even  receive  the  respectful  regard  of  common  people  ; 
they  are  nearly  all  drunkards,  and  so  notoriously  corrupt 
that  in  their  preaching  they  exhort  the  people  to  "Do  as 
we  advise  you,  but  not  as  we  do."  These  travesties  on 
the  gospel,  nevertheless,  succeed  in  filching  from  the 
peasantry  the  means  they  can  illy  afford  to  .spare.  But 
under  a  suspicion  that  the  highest  reward  hereafter 
attainable  is  given  to  those  most  liberal  in  their  donations 
to  the  church,  a  belief  which  has  been  created  by  priestly 
mercenaries,  the  peasants  divide  their  last  copecks  and 
go  hungry  that  they  may  be  called  faithful.  Churches, 
monasteries  and  chapels  abound  in  rare  profusion 
throughout  Rus.sia  ;  nowhere  in  the  world  is  there  such  a 
lavish  display  in  ecclesiastical  edifices  and  decorations  ; 
altars  of  solid  silver,  candelabras  of  pure  gold,  steeples 
and  domes  glittering  with  precious  metals  ;  priestly  robes 
bedizened  with  diamonds,  rubies,  sapphires,  and  in  short 
the  whole  church  government  covered  inside  and  outside 
with  a  paraphernalia  of  extravagant,  inestimable  wealth. 
Now,  who  pays  for  all  this  pomp  and  more  than  Roman 
splendor?  Why,  none  hut  the  peasantry,  those  whose 
earnings  are  counted  by  copecks — half-cents — who  go 
without  schooling,  without  bread,  without  any  comforts, 
and  who  bring  up  their  children  no  better  than  them- 
selves ;  these  are  they  who  contribute  the  means  that 
make  such  a  mockery  of  Godliness,  justice,  common- 


44(}  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

sense,  possible.  Beside  the  icon  in  every  peasant's  home 
is  placed  a  small  box  into  which  something  is  dropped 
every  day,  if  but  a  copeck,  for  the  benefit  of  the  clergy, 
and  whenever  a  miracle  is  wrought  in  a  peasant's  family, 
which,  in  their  estimation,  is  very  often,  this  church  allow- 
ance not  infrequently  extends  to  the  last  piece  of  coin 
the  family  possesses. 

In  this  barbaric  superstition — the  Russian  Church — -is 
found  the  primary  cause  of  Nihilism.  The  oppressive 
burdens  complained  of  do  not  arise  wholly  from  despotic 
rulership  ;  the  Czar  does  not  prevent  the  earth  from  bring- 
ing forth,  nor  does  he  withhold  the  hand  of  any  husband- 
man from  the  plow  ;  but  the  church  has  set  aside  one  hun- 
dred holidays  annually,  on  which  no  man  who  is  faithful 
must  labor ;  by  this  edict  she  destroys  one-third  the  pro- 
ductiveness of  the  Empire  and  appropriates  nearly  all  of 
the  other  two-thirds  to  herself,  to  keep  up  appearances. 
Poverty  never  considers  the  real  cause  that  produces  it, 
but  angry  at  fate,  she  is  controlled  by  prejudice  against 
the  more  fortunate,  and  in  these  facts  is  patent  reason 
why  the  political  dissensions  in  Russia  are  so  serious.  The 
life  of  every  nation  is  dependent  upon  the  agricultural 
resources  it  yields,  so  that  every  nation  must  be  poor 
whose  pastoral  people  are  poor ;  it  is  better  to  stop  the 
spinning  wheel  than  to  arrest  the  plow,  and  more  wisely 
economical  is  it  to  burden  the  commerce  of  manufacture 
than  to  encourage  any  scheme  that  looks  toward  a  tax 
upon  the  farmer.  Russia  has  not  yet  learned  this  im- 
portant truth. 

Agriculture  in  all  Russia  is  still  conducted  upon  primitive 
principles  ;  I  found  that  the  peasants  were  indisposed  to 
adopt  any  modern  implement,  but  for  what  reason  could 
not  be  explained.  Their  plows  are  not  wholly  unlike 
those  used  in  China,  consisting  of  a  straight  and  narrow 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA . 


447 


448  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

plow-share,  without  any  mould-board,  which  runs  into 
the  earth  not  more  than  three  inches  and  makes  more  of 
a  treneh  than  furrow  ;  their  plow  horses  work  in  shafts, 
and  even  here  the  douga  is  not  discarded,  but  retained 
as  a  relic  of  ancient  usage.  I>ut  in  the  harvest  lield  there 
is  still  less  of  modern  farming  seen,  for  the  grain  is  cut 
with  hand-sickles,  behind  which  follow  gleaners,  as  in  the 
days  of  Ruth  and  Boaz.  It  is  really  a  pretty  sight  to 
witness  the  harvest  gathering;  as  the  peasants  live  in 
communes,  they  work  together  upon  a  communistic  prin- 
ciple ;  when  the  wheat  has  ripened — Russia  raises  com- 
paratively little  else — the  village  population,  both  men  and 
women,  turn  out  with  sickles  at  their  labor,  which  begins 
at  break  of  day  and  continues  until  darkness.  I  have  seen 
more  than  one  hundred  reapers  strung  out  in  a  line  gath- 
ering the  grain  of  a  single  field,  the  men  wearing  trousers, 
of  some  coarse  material,  outside  of  which  the  shirt  is 
worn  ;  but  the  women,  if  not  more  expensively  dressed,  an; 
certainly  more  gaudily  decorated.  They  are  very  fond 
of  bright  colors,  their  hair  being  bound  up  with  gay  hand- 
kerchiefs, while  their  dresses  are  either  of  a  bright  red, 
blue  or  green  ;  viewed  at  a  distance,  against  a  back- 
ground of  ripened  grain  and,  as  a  whole,  moving  in  ec- 
centric undulations,  the  sight  is  exceedingly  pleasing. 
When  the  wheat  is  gathered  and  ready  for  threshing,  it  is 
taken  into  sheds,  which  can  hardly  be  called  barns,  and 
there  the  grain  is  beaten  out  with  flails,  as  in  old  en  times- 
Notwithstanding  the  crude  manner  in  which  the  peasantry 
of  Russia  till  their  lands,  yet  Russia  is  the  only  competi- 
tor America  has  in  an  ambition  to  feed  the  world. 
Fortunately  for  us,  what  progress  has  been  made  in  Rus- 
sia has  been  in  manufacture,  to  the  almost  utter  neglect 
of  agriculture,  the  result  of  which  is  the  unwonted  de- 
pression of  all  her  energies,  and  the  critical  condition  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  449 

her  finances.  This  may  he  accounted  for  by  a  considera- 
tion of  the  following  facts,  which  should  have  special 
interest  for  Americans,  because  a  removal  of  the  causes 
may  seriously  embarrass  our  prosperity  : 

With  immense  tracts  of  sparsely  populated  but  fertile 
lands,  a  great  lack  of  native  skilled  labor,  and  undevel- 
oped mineral  resources,  Russia  is  necessarily  an  agricul- 
tural country,  and  must  seek  material  progress  in  driving 
the  plough,  and  not  in  forging  the  ploughshare.  Every- 
thing, however,  seems  to  militate  against  the  success  of  ag- 
riculture. The  land,  which  is  in  the  hands  of  the  peasants 
in  the  purely  Russian  provinces,  is  being  rapidly  exhausted 
under  unskilful  and  improvident  husbandry,  and  where, 
under  proper  management,  the  complaint  would  be  that 
there  were  not  hands  sufficient  to  work  the  soil,  the  actual 
cry  is,  on  the  contrary,  that  there  is  not  land  enough  to 
feed  the  inhabitants.  To  the  foreigner  who  knows  the 
vast  extent  of  the  Russian  Empire  and  the  comparative 
paucity  of  its  inhabitants,  the  idea  of  an  earth-hunger  in 
the  dominions  of  the  Czar  appears  simply  absurd.  Never- 
theless the  fact  exists  that  the  present  deplorable  condi- 
tion of  the  peasantry  in  many  of  the  provinces  is  gravely 
attributed  to  the  smallness  of  the  shares  of  land  which 
fall  to  the  lot  of  the  various  village  families. 

The  subject  has  become  so  important  to  Russia  that  the 
Government  has  taken  it  into  serious  consideration,  a 
commission  being  appointed  to  enquire  into  the  question  ; 
and  steps  having  been  taken  to  facilitate  the  removal  of 
large  numbers  of  the  peasants  from  the  central  provinces 
to  the  vacant  and  fertile  lands  in  the  east  of  the  Empire. 
It  is  part  of  the  theory  of  the  largest  and  most  influ- 
ential class  of  Russian  politicians  that  the  welfare  of  the 
country  depends  upon  the  possession  by  each  peasant  of 
a  plot  of  land  sufficient  under  tillage  to  secure  his  main- 


450  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

tenance,  and  great  alarm  is  therefore  felt  at  what  is 
considered  the  failure  in  this  respect  of  the  system  intro- 
duced on  the  abolition  of  serfdom.  It  is  perfectly  clear 
that  if,  under  the  ukase  of  liberation,  each  peasant  fam- 
ily received  only  sufficient  land  for  its  support,  the  small- 
est increase  in  the  population  must  produce  the  greatest 
distress,  unless  the  system  of  agriculture  be  so  improved 
as  to  render  the  portions  of  land  continually  more  pro- 
ductive. The  Russian  press,  however,  and  the  poli- 
ticians who  have  specially  occupied  themselves  with  the 
land  question,  have  for  the  most  part  paid  but  little  atten- 
tion to  the  consideration  of  the  necessity  for  a  general 
improvement  in  agriculture.  Tables  have  been  drawn  up, 
and  statistics  have  been  prepared,  proving  beyond  dispute 
that  the  portion  of  land  possessed  by  each  male  peasant 
is  smaller  than  was  contemplated  under  the  great  Act  of 
Emancipation,  and  that  under  present  conditions  the  pro- 
duce of  this  portion  is  insufficient  to  satisfy  the  require- 
ments of  its  possessor.  All  this,  however,  seems  to  fail 
to  suggest  the  desirability,  and,  indeed,  necessity  of 
seeking  to  increase  the  value  of  the  produce  of  each  acre 
of  land.  Great  obstacles  stand  in  the  way  of  any  rapid 
or  serious  improvement,  but  still  much  might  be  done.  A 
first  requirement  is  the  introduction  of  capital  for  the  im- 
provement of  stock,  for  works  of  irrigation,  for  the  pur- 
chase of  machinery,  and  for  providing  the  means  for  tid- 
ing over  bad  seasons  ;  but  this  urgently  required  capital 
is  hard  to  get.  One  great  obstacle  in  the  unnatural  di- 
version of  capital  to  manufacturing  industries,  has  been 
pointed  out,  but  in  addition  to  this,  other  circumstances 
combine  to  prevent  those  classes  that  would  be  most  likely 
to  come  forward,  from  appearing  as  investors.  The  Jew 
capitalists  who  are  to  be  found  in  every  provincial  town 
of  the  west,  and  many  of  whom  as  dealers  in  agricul- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  451 

tural  produce,  have  intimate  relations  with  the  needy  land- 
owners and  peasants,  are  prohibited  by  law  from  becom- 
ing owners,  mortgagees,  or  managers  of  landed  property, 
and  this  fact  alone  locks  up  from  the  land  large  sums 
which  would  otherwise  almost  certainly  be  employed  in 
its  development.  After  the  Jews,  the  large  landowners 
are  the  class  from  whom  most  might  be  expected.  Their 
wealth  and  superior  intelligence,  if  devoted  to  agriculture, 
would  be  almost  invaluable  ;  but  since  the  emancipation 
of  the  serfs  few  of  them  reside  on  their  estates  or  take 
any  great  interest  in  them.  A  barrier  has  arisen  between 
them  and  those  who  were  formerly  their  slaves,  and  if 
the  mujik  thinks  that  he  can  in  any  way  struggle  on  inde- 
pendently, even  high  wages  will  seldom  tempt  him  to 
work  for  his  former  master.  The  proprietor  finds  life 
in  the  provinces  exceedingly  dull  and  monotonous  ;  his  re- 
lations with  the  peasantry  around  him  are  generally 
strained,  and  the  superior  comfort  of  residence  in  one  of 
the  capitals  or  abroad  is  so  great  that  he  seldom  resists 
the  temptation  to  quit  the  provinces  and  hand  over  the 
management  of  his  estates  to  an  agent.  If  the  agent 
were  likely  to  be  a  man  of  intelligence  and  probity  the 
damage  would  not  be  so  great,  but  such  men  are  hard  to 
find,  and  as  a  rule  under  the  administration  of  a  deputy 
the  property  is  neglected,  and  instead  of  an  example  of 
superior  agriculture  being  given  to  the  peasants,  the  in- 
dolence and  too  often  the  dishonesty  of  the  agent  lead  to 
results  on  the  estate  of  the  large  proprietors  as  bad  as  are 
produced  on  the  village  lands  by  the  incapacity  of  the 
peasants.  Thus  do  we  observe  the  drawbacks  to  Russia's 
prosperity,  and  may  feel  assured  that  so  long  as  they 
continue  to  exist  the  country  will  grow  poorer  until  no 
one  may  foresee  the  end.  I  am  frank  to  admit  that  the 
Russian  Empire  has  infinitely  more  natural  advantages 


452  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

than  the  United  States  ;  she  has  the  finest  agricultural 
lands  on  earth,  and  more  of  it ;  she  has  more  mineral 
wealth  than  any  other  nation  ;  every  climate  maybe  found 
in  the  Empire,  and  where  is  there  a  country  that  lias  so 
many  and  such  great  rivers  as  Russia.?  The  soil  in  what 
is  known  as  the  "black  earth  district,"  south-east  Russia, 
is  positively  so  rich  that  it  will  produce  nothing  but 
potatoes,  or  such  other  vegetables  as  will  only  grow  in 
manure,  and  this  district  contains  millions  of  acres. 
Siberia  itself  has  enough  arable  lands,  that  if  properly 
cultivated  might  be  made  to  produce  sustenance  for  the 
whole  world  ;  and  yet,  with  all  these  advantages,  Russia 
is  behind  every  nation,  and  her  population  is  only  seven 
inhabitants  per  square  mile.  What  a  country  for  emi- 
grants, if  the  laws  were  liberal ! 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

AFTER  visiting  nearly  two  days  among  the  serfs,  I  dis- 
missed Schleuter,  who  returned  home  to  Tobolsk,  while 
I  went  directly  to  St.  Petersburg,  and  there  renewed  my 
relations  with  Count  Tolstoi  through  a  second  letter  of 
cordial  introduction  and  recommendation,  from  Minister 
Hunt,  as  already  published.  My  desire  now  was  to 
inform  myself  of  the  social  and  religious  life  of  the 
aristocratic  and  middle  classes,  as  found  at  the  Russian 
Capital. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  Moscow  and  St.  Peters- 
burg are  both  Muscovite  Capitals,  abounding  with  all  the 
paraphernalia  of  Imperialism,  regarded  socially  they  are 
as  distinct  as  Paris  and  Constantinople,  having  no  single 
characteristic  in  common  save  in  the  possible  matter  of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  453 

church  decoration.  'Moscow  is  a  gem  in  the  Asiatic  sig- 
net still ;  though  in  strongly  pronounced  antagonism  to 
Budhism  and  the  Moslem  creed,  she  nevertheless  clings  to 
such  observances  as  distinguish  those  faiths,  and  did  the 
spires  of  her  churches  wear  crescents  instead  of  crosses 
we  could  readily  believe  that  Moscow  was  the  Mussul- 
man's holy  city.  But  St.  Petersburg  has  a  highly  pol- 
ished veneering  of  European  civilization,  whicji  is  con- 
spicuous everywhere  outside  her  monasteries ;  on  the 
streets  may  be  seen,  though  at  infrequent  intervals, 
monks  with  round,  band-box  looking  headpieces,  from 
which  a  piece  of  black  muslin  is  suspended  behind  ;  or, 
members  of  the  white  and  black  clergy  dressed  in  black 
stoles,  wearing  hats  tucked  up  at  four  quarters  by 
strings,  the  former  having  short  and  the  latter  long, 
straggling  hair  ;  but  these  are  about  all  the  ecclesiastical 
sights  to  be  seen  on  the  streets  in  St.  Petersburg,  and 
even  they  are  not  common.  Sunday,  too,  is  not  a  day 
wholly  devoted  to  religious  observances,  for  I  saw 
large  squads  of  men  busy  at  work  repairing  streets, 
which  must  have  been  done  by  municipal  order,  and 
there  is  also  more  or  less  business  done  at  the  small 
shops  on  Sunday ;  but  in  Moscow  such  sacrilegious 
employment  would  not  be  tolerated. 

I  attended  services  one  Sunday  at  St.  Isaac's  Cathe- 
dral, in  company  with  my  interpreter,  Kuntze,  and  was 
entertained  in  a  much  more  agreeable  manner  than  I  had 

~ 

anticipated.  This  famous  cathedral,  though  hardly  so 
fine  as  the  Grand  Votive  church  in  Moscow,  is  a  marvel 
of  architectural  beauty  and  magnificence  ;  its  cupola  is 
a  mass  of  burnished  gold,  lifting  up  against  the  sky  its 
wonderful  hemisphere  like  a  bright  sun  half  set  behind 
a  mountain  peak.  It  has  four  fronts,  with  the  same 
number  of  main  entrances,  before  each  of  which  are 


454 


HtfSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXl> 


eight  granite  pillars  sixty  feet  in  height  and  seven  feet 
through.  The  interior,  however,  is  much  more  impos- 
ing, being  composed  of  many  beautiful  rooms  supported 
by  pillars  of  malachite  ;  the  steps  are  made  of  porphyry  ; 
the  walls  are  of  lapis  lazuli,  the  floors  are  of  variegated 
marble,  the  inner  dome  is  of  malachite,  and  the  gorgeous 


ST.  ISAAC'S  CATHEDRAL. 

interior  is  lighted  by  foliated  windows  of  rare  colors. 
A  feature  of  the  decorations  inside  is  the  prestol  form- 
ing the  shrine,  which  is  made  of  malachite  and  was 
a  present  from  Prince  Demidoff  ;  the  cost  of  this  shrine 
was  one  million  dollars,  equal  to  the  cost  of  the  build- 
ing's foundation. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  455 

One  peculiarity  of  all  Greek  churches  is  the  absence" 
of  seats,  and  instrumental  music ;  every  one,  whether 
prince  or  peasant,  must  stand  up  during  the  entire  service, 
which  generally  lasts  two  hours.  As  I  walked  into  the 
church  it  was  between  two  files  of  beggars  who  haunted 
the  entrance,  and  with  suppliant  mien  addressed  a  peti- 
tion to  each  person  who  passed  them ;  they  also  held  a 
little  board  in  their  hands  on  which  they  allowed  to 
remain  the  copecks  that  were  given  them,  as  an  incentive 
to  others  to  contribute.  When  I  reached  the  interior 
I  found  the  congregation  disposed  in  various  naves,  and 
generally  in  squads,  the  principal  portion  of  the  audience, 
however,  being  in  the  center  nave,  before  which  was  the 
chancel  and  .priest.  My  attention  was  attracted  to  bevies 
of  suppliants  whose  devotions  were  being  made  beforeicons 
of  Christ,  Mary,  Russian  saints,  and  bi blical  patriarchs  ; 
each  suppliant  was  provided  with  a  pocket-full  of  can- 
dles, as  every  icon  was  surrounded  with  candelabras,  some 
having  more  than  fifty,  which  were  supplied  with  new  can- 
dles as  soon  as  those  burning  were  exhausted  ;  the  use  of 
candles  is  so  great  that  there  are  in  Russia  hundreds  of  very 
large  factories  which  produce  nothing  but  these  sacrificial 
candles,  and  it  is  a  most  remunerative  industry.  Devo- 
tions made  to  these  icons  consist  in  the  suppliant  first 
addressing  a  short  prayer  before  the  image,  while  in  a 
standing  position  ;  the  suppliant  then  bows  down  and 
touches  the  floor  three  times  with  his  forehead,  still 
reciting  prayers ;  this  worship  is  repeated  many  times, 
and  when  concluded  another  prayer  is  offered,  after 
which  the  sign  of  the  cross  is  made  three  times,  when 
the  suppliant  passes  on  to  the  center  nave  and  participates 
in  the  regular  services,  which  are  chiefly  choral.  I  saw 
many  old  men  and  women  undergoing  the  preliminary 
service  in  a  way  which  excited  my  compassion ;  in  pros- 


456  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

trating  themselves  I  could  hear  their  stiffened  joints, 
inflexible  from  age,  crack  with  each  motion,  and  J.  could 
plainly  see  that  the  exertion  consequent  upon  so  repeat- 
edly rising  and  kneeling  was  of  a  most  taxing,  if  not 
exhausting,  nature. 

Russian  choirs  are  famous  the  world  over ;  no  other 
people  have  such  musical  throats,  and  when  animated  by 
the  religious  feeling  which  so  thoroughly  pervades  them 
they  produce  a  harmony  which  I  can  best  describe  bycal- 
ing  it  heavenly.  I  needed  no  interpreter  to  tell  me  of  its 
beauty,  or  to  inspire  me  with  the  soul-attuning  melody 
which  welled  up  until  I  became  lost  in  its  swells  of  rich 
grace-imparting,  spiritualizing  concord  of  delicious  music. 
While  entranced  by  this  ecstacy  of  sweet  sounds  I  was 
suddenly  alarmed  by  a  shriek  which  rose  above  the 
harmony,  piercing  and  painful  ;  looking  in  the  direction 
from  whence  the  excitement  proceeded,  I  caught  sight  of 
a  woman  who  was  being  borne  upon  the  shoulders  of  two 
men  through  the  audience  toward  a  large  image  of  the 
crucified  Christ ;  instantly  there  occurred  to  me  the  idea 
of  sacrificial  rites,  that  this  woman,  screaming  as  if  she 
were  possessed  of  a  thousand  devils,  was  to  do  some 
propitiatory  act  for  absolvment  from  a  penalty  which  she 
conceived  was  about  to  be  ad  ministered  ;  these  reflections 
were  produced  by  the  strange  influences  which  surrounded 
me,  but  upon  inquiry  addressed  to  my  guide  for  the 
cause,  he  informed  me  that  the  woman  was  a  paralytic 
who,  having  received  absolution,  and  the  power  of  faith 
through  a  reception  of  the  holy  spirit,  had  begged  to  be 
carried  to  the  feet  of  Christ,  which,  if  she  might  touch,  she 
expected  to  be  cured  of  her  affliction.  I  found  that  this 
was  a  very  usual  occurrence,  there  being  few  services 
hold  in  the  Cathedral  that  some  incurable  among  the 
audience  did  not  seek  to  touch  the  sacred  image, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  457 

believing  it  would  make  them  whole.  I  did  not  hear 
that  any  one  had  ever  been  thus  miraculously  cured,  but 
then  there  is  no  limit  to  faith,  and  I  did  not  expect  to  find 
reason  prevailing  to  any  extent  among  a  people  so 
exclusively  religious  as  these. 

I  attended  one  other  sacred  service  in  St.  Peters- 
burg, which  was  even  more  interesting  than  that  at  St. 
Isaacs  Cathedral,  and  which,  I  may  add,  impressed 
me  more  seriously.  It  was  a  te  deum  sung  at  the  St. 
Alexander  Nevskoi  Monastery  by  fourteen  monks  and 
twelve  neophytes.  This  ecclesiastical  institution  is 
renowned  throughout  the  Empire,  being  to  Russia  what 
Westminster  Abbey  is  to  England.  Under  its  marble 
floors  repose  hundreds  of  the  most  famous  characters  in 
Russian  history,  whose  deeds  are  briefly  recorded  on  the 
tablature  above  them.  In  a  large  yard  about  the  Mon- 
astery lie  buried  many  people  once  rich  enough  to  pur- 
chase a  resting  place  in  the  sacred  enclosure,  for  it  is  a  fact 
that  none  can  find  burial  here  except  upon  the  payment 
of  a  certain  sum,  which  generally  amounts  to  $25,000  ; 
this  is  considered  small  enough  price  for  a  bed  in  so  holy 
a  place,  which  many  think  is  but  a  step  removed  from 
heaven. 

Some  years  ago  there  was  a  Lady  Superior  in  charge 
of  the  Monastery  who  was  also  financial  agent  of  the 
institution ;  she  was  a  woman  of  extraordinary  force  of 
character  and  so  popular  among  the  aristocracy  that  she 
secured  from  time  to  time  most  princely  bequests  from 
rich  people  of  the  Empire ;  she  was  on  very  intimate 
terms  with  the  royal  family,  particulary  with  the  Em- 
press of  Alexander  II.,  and  possessed  the  confidence  of 
everybody.  Her  charities  became  the  wonder  of  all,  for 
she  built  almost  a  score  of  institutions  for  the  benefit  of 
the  poor,  and  established  hospitals  in  many  parts  of 


458  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

Russia.  It  is  estimated  that  in  her  ambition  to  amelio- 
rate the  condition  of  the  Russian  poor  she  spent  not  less 
than  $20,000,000.  After  a  time  it  was  hinted  that  all 
this  wealth  had  not  been  derived  from  the  sources  she 
represented,  but  that  she  had  appropriated  the  church 
revenues.  An  investigation  followed,  which  was 
prompted  by  priests  jealous  of  their  own  personal  inter- 
ests, which  established  the  facts  as  charged.  She  was 
then  placed  on  trial  for  sacrilege,  in  misappropriating 
church  funds,  and  after  one  of  the  most  exciting  legal 
contests  that  ever  took  place  in  St.  Petersburg,  her 
guilt  was  established.  The  trial  was  attended  not  only 
by  scores  of  the  most  famous  people  of  the  Empire,  but 
also  by  the  Emperor  and  Empress.  It  was  clearly 
proved  that,  though  the  Lady  Superior  had  used  funds 
of  which  she  was  the  trust  agent,  yet  every  dollar  of  it 
had  been  charitably  employed  ;  that  even  her  own  wants 
and  needs  were  neglected  to  the  end  that  she  might  use 
every  copeck  available  for  the  betterment  of  those  need- 
ing aid.  Her  sentence  was  confinement  in  prison  for 
twenty  years,  but  instead  of  this  harsh  judgment  affix- 
ing any  stigma  to  her  name,  hundreds  of  aristocratic 
women  begged  that  they  might  be  permitted  to  share 
her  imprisonment.  When  assigned  to  a  cell  in  the  Bol- 
shaya  Sadovaya  prison  she  found  it  a  solid  bower  of 
perfume-laden  flowers  ;  she  was  daily  visited  by  mem- 
bers of  the  Imperial  family,  and  every  possible  attention 
was  paid  her  by  people  of  the  highest  rank.  After  two 
years  of  imprisonment,  which  was  one  continual  ovation, 
Alexander  II.  gave  her  a  pardon,  and  within  two  months 
after  her  liberation  she  was  reinstated  in  the  position  of 
Lady  Superior  in  the  Monastery,  where  she  is  still  serv- 
ing, with  enlarged  jurisdiction,  and  honored  as  no  other 
woman  was  ever  honored  in  Russia. 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  459 

I  entered  the  monastery  with  my  guide,  who  eon- 
ducted  me  through  long  corridors,  which  seemed  to  be 
endless,  past  dark  chambers  which  looked  like  charnel 
pits,  and  at  times  along  narrow  passages,  until  nearly 
a  half-mile  had  been  traversed,  when  we  emerged  into  the 
main  chapel.  The  te  deum  service  begins  at  four  o'clock 
p.  M.,  and  continues  uninterruptedly  for  two  hours;  it 
was  quarter  past  four  when  we  arrived  and  the  choir  was 
already  chanting  their  musical  invocations ;  the  first 
rich  notes  that  fell  upon  my  ear  charmed  every  sense 
and  thrilled  me  with  melodious  rapture.  I  walked  for- 
ward in  the  great  hall,  which  was  deserted  save  by  three 
women  who  were  praying  at  the  base  of  a  gray  pillar, 
until  near  the  chancel,  upon  a  raised  dais  on  which  stood 
the  monks  and  neophytes,  their  backs  toward  the  hall 
and  with  faces  turned  upon  a  large  painting  of  Christ. 
There  was  about  the  whole  scene  something  to  inspire 
the  soul ;  some  overshadowing  but  impersonal  presence  ; 
a  strangeness  that  suggested  infinity  and  spirituality ; 
the  shaking  of  hands  and  declaration  of  familiarity 
between  the  living  and  dead.  The  monks  were  habited 
in  long,  black  surplices ;  on  their  heads  they  wore  the 
black  caps  indicative  of  self-denial  and  retirement  from 
the  world ,  and  their  hair  hung  far  down  the  back  in  con- 
sonance with  the  idea  of  a  neglected  body,  but  care  for 
the  soul. 

I  have  heard  with  delight  the  famous  professional 
singers  of  both  continents,  and  measured  their  harmony 
by  the  fullest  sense  of  the  ear,  but  to  none  of  them, 
Lind,  Patti,  Mlsson,  could  I  compare  the  harvest  of 
symphony  as  produced  by  the  monks  ;  indeed,  one  is  as 
an  elevation  of  man's  feelings  from  the  sordid  cares  of 
life  to  the  bountiful  love  of  domestic  happiness  and  con- 
tentment ;  while  the  other  is  like  lifting  one  from  out  a 


460  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

life  of  disappointments  for  a  transplanting  into  felicitous 
fields  of  paradise,  where  the  very  essence  of  existence 
is  musical.  I  never  before  conceived  the  limits  of 
vocal  culture,  I  did  not  appreciate  the  mesmerism  of  a 
human  voice,  nor  understand  the  magic  of  a  song. 
There  I  stood,  before  that  wonderful  choir,  so  em- 
balmed with  melody,  and  intensified  by  a  rapture  so  won- 
derful that  I  felt  as  one  who  might  ascend  upon  wings 
of  love  to  the  portals  of  Hesperides  and  there  bathe  in 
a  flood  of  joy  which  blessed  souls  find  on  the  beautiful 
shores.  I  am  not  unconscious  of  the  suspicion  which 
many  readers  are  liable  to  attach  to  so  florid  a  descrip- 
tion ;  who  may,  indeed,  pronounce  it  sophomoric  exag- 
geration, but  my  excuse  for  using  such  adjective  expres- 
sions is  the  genuine,  soul-entranced  feeling  I  had  while 
listening  to  the  Monk  choir,  and  which  I  have  only 
indifferently  described.  I  might  resc  under  the  imputa- 
tion of  supersensitiveness  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that 
all  who  hear  this  famous  choir  are  impressed  with  feel- 
ings identical  with  my  own.  Princely  offers  have  been 
made  the  choir  for  their  choral  services  in  public,  but 
these  have  all  been  refused  with  the  pious  remark,  "  We 
sing  only  for  God  and  the  dead."  Some  years  ago  a 
great  tenor  of  the  chofr  was  ordered  by  Alexander  II.  to 
sing  on  a  public  occasion  at  the  Royal  Italian  Opera  in 
St.  Petersburg.  His  appearance  created  such  an  intense 
excitement  that  the  Emperor  was  glad  to  have  him 
return  to  the  monastery  ;  so  great  was  the  rush  of  peo- 
ple to  hear  the  tenor  that  many  persons  were  trampled, 
while  those  who  gained  admission  to  the  theatre  mani- 
fested such  delirious  joy  that  they  would  hardly  permit 
him  to  leave  the  stage  ;  in  addition  to  this  rather  annoy- 
ing adulation,  the  church  violently  protested  against  his 
public  appearance,  pronouncing  it  a  sacrilegious  sacrifice, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  461 

and  hurled  dreadful  anathemas  at  the  Emperor  for  his 
order.  This  was  the  first  and  last  time  that  any  mem- 
ber of  the  Monastery  choir  has  sung  outside  the  chapel 
of  their  own  sacred  institution. 

When  the  services  were  concluded,  at  six  o'clock  p.  M., 
the  monks  withdrew  into  their  cells  and  I  was  left  to 
inspect  the  building.  The  chief  object  of  interest  inside 
the  chapel  is  a  silver  casket  containing  the  body  of  St. 
Alexander  Nevskoi,  who  is  the  patron  saint  of  Peters- 
burg. This  saint  is  a  canonization  of  the  Grand  Duke 
Alexander,  who  was  a  member  of  the  Rurik  dynasty,  but 
lived  only  a  short  time  before  the  accession  of  the 
Romanoffs.  He  is  reputed  to  have  been  a  great  warrior, 
and  it  is  said  of  him  that  in  a  battle  with  the  Swedes, 
fought  on  the  very  spot  where  the  monastery  now  stands, 
he  defeated  his  enemies  with  great  loss  and  killed  the 
Swedish  commander  with  his  own  sword.  The  bones  of 
this  hero  were  originally  buried  near  Kazan,  but  were 
brought  to  St.  Petersburg  and  canonized  by  order  of 
Peter  the  Great.  Not  long  after  this  event  some  priests 
of  Little  Russia  slipped  into  St.  Petersburg  and  succeeded 
in  stealing  the  canonized  bones,  which  they  removed  to  a 
spot  not  far  from  where  they  were  first  buried.  Much 
distress  was  felt  by  Peter  at  this  desecration,  audit  is  said 
he  fell  to  praying  for  direction  how  to  proceed  to  recover 
the  bones.  His  petition  was  answered  by  an  angel  who 
appeared  to  Peter  in  a  cloud  of  fire  and  told  him  how  the 
bones  were  taken  away  and  where  they  were  buried  ;  it 
is  told  that  the  Emperor,  accompanied  by  two  of  his  royal 
suite,  visited  the  spot  described  by  the  angel  and,  with 
his  own  hands,  dug  up  the  saint,  boxed  the  bones  and 
carried  them  back  to  St.  Petersburg,  determined  that 
they  should  not  be  again  disturbed  Peter  caused  to  be 
made  an  immense  silver  sarcophagus,  into  which  he 


IlUSSiAX  A'llllLIiSAr  AND 

placed  the  sacred  remains,  then  closed  down  the  lid, 
locked  it  and  threw  the  key  into  the  Neva  River.  This 
solid  silver  casket,  or  rather  sarcophagus,  is  in  a  side 
chapel,  to  the  right  of  the  sacristy.  It  is  square  shaped, 
and  at  each  corner  is  the  figure  of  an  angel  (large  as  a 
grown  person)  in  an  attitude  of  mourning.  The  value  of 
this  piece  of  art  and  precious  metals  is  $250,000. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

WHILE  I  did  not  attend  divine  services  in  but  two 
churches  in  St.  Petersburg,  yet  I  did  not  neglect  to  visit 
the  Cathedral  of  St.  Petersburg,  generally  called  Cathe- 
dral Kazan,  as  it  is  dedicated  to  an  imaginative  deity,  or 
rather  to  a  canonized  woman,  who  doubtless  never  existed, 
but  who  is  supposed  to  have  been  named  Kazan.  This 
church  is  the  finest  perhaps  in  all  Russia,  always  excepting, 
of  course,  the  Grand  Votive  Church  in  Moscow.  It  is  situ- 
ated on  the  Nevskoi  Prospekt,  and  is  the  most  conspicu- 
ous building  on  that  great  thoroughfare.  In  shape  it  is 
that  of  a  cross,  its  greatest  length  being  238  feet  and  its 
width  182  feet,  the  whole  being  modeled  after  St.  Peter's 
at  Rome,  though  in  height  the  building  does  not  meas- 
are  above  250  feet,  and  the  cost  did  not  exced  $4,000,000. 
The  most  curious  and  interesting  object  connected  with 
this  cathedral  is  an  image  of  "Lady  Kazan,"  which 
stands  near  the  altar.  This  image  is  supposed  to  have 
been  made  in  the  city  of  Kazan,  in  1579.  I  say  "  sup- 
posed" because  the  Russian  priesthood  do  not  want  to 
positively  know  anything,  being  mindful  of  the  fact  that 
fascination  is  much  more  likely  to  be  excited  by  legend 
than  by  established  history.  The  figure  is  known  to  have 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  463 

been  placed  in  the  cathedral  in  1821,  where  it  has  ever  since 
remained,  a  very  strong  attraction,  and  as  an  investment 
it  has  no  doubt  paid  the  church  enormously,  for  a  devout 
peasant  can  hardly  look  upon  it  without  being  moved  to 
make  a  contribution. 

I  have  called  this  ideal  representation  of  Lady  Kazan 
a  figure,  or  image,  but  it  is  neither  painting  nor  image, 
being  a  medley  of  both.  The  Greek  religion,  as  before 
mentioned,  prohibits  the  use  of  images,  but  the  prohi- 
bition is  rather  technical  than  literal.  In  reality  the  fig- 
ure proper  is  a  painting,  but  it  is  habilitated  in  regal  attire 
and  almost  covered  with  precious  jewels.  There  is  one 
diamond  in  the  crown  valued  at  $100,000,  and  a  sap- 
phire which  forms  the  center  of  the  tiara  is  said  to  be 
worth  $500,000 ;  it  was  contributed  by  the  Grand- 
Duchess  Catharina  Paulovna,  who  is  now  "  supposed  " 
to  be  getting  value  received  in  the  court  of  last  resort — 
heaven. 

There  is  invested  in  churches,  decorations  and  sacred 
images  in  St.  Petersburg  more  than  $200,000,000,  a  sum 
equal  to  nearly  one-half  the  value  of  all  other  property  in 
the  municipality  ;  yet  I  was  surprised  to  learn  that  most 
of  the  money  used  in  sustaining  the  churches  is  derived 
from  the  poorer  classes ;  this  statement  appears  almost 
incredible  but  it  is  none  the  less  true ;  its  apparent 
exaggeration  is  somewhat  modified,  however,  by  the  fact 
that  in  Russia  the  priests  receive  very  little  more  than  is 
barely  sufficient  for  their  needs,  which  are  few. 
Although  Russia  is,  as  a  nation,  intensely  religious,  her 
aristocracy  incline  to  sacred  matters  with  such  indiffer- 
ence that  they  cannot  be  called  religious,  while  there  is 
not  one  among  a  hundred  of  her  scientists  or  learned 
men  who  is  not  an  agnostic.  I  was  told  that  scarcely 
any  of  the  upper  classes  attend  divine  service,  and  in  the 


464 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


homes  of  the  nobility  an  icon  i.s  beginning  to  be  a  rarity. 
So  we  can  readily  understand  why  the  burdens  of  church 
expenses  have  fallen  upon  the  poorer  people,  whose  loy- 


alty to  the  faith  of  their  ancestors  is  unwavering,  same 
as  we  find  it  in  all  countries.  But  as  the  poor  in  Eussia 
are  so  much  more  numerous  than  the  rich,  and  because 


EXILE  LIFE  IN.  SIBERIA.  465 

they  compose  the  sinews  of  the  government  and  are  its  sole 
dependence,  their  influence  is  recognized  by  the  govern- 
ment in  continuing  its  religious  observances,  and  in  pro- 
viding such  pomp  as  delights  the  simple  votaries  of  the 
Greek  Church. 

It  would  require  too  much  space  to  describe  the  many 
holidays  set  apart  by  Russian  laws,  but  some  of  them  are 
observed  so  generally,  and  with  such  display  of  ceremo- 
nial, that  I  must  mention  a  few.  The  most  distinguished 
day  and  festival  occasion  occurs  on  August  first,  which 
is  called  "  First  Spass;"  or  Savior  day.  It  is  commem- 
orative of  the  crossing  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee  by  Christ 
and  his  disciples.  The  service  of  celebration  begins  with 
a  te  deum  at  church,  which  lasts  about  two  hours  ;  at  its 
conclusion  a  procession  is  formed,  composed  of  nearly 
all  the  common  people  in  St.  Petersburg,  few  persons  of 
wealth  or  rank  participating.  At  the  head  of  this  pro- 
cession are  six  peasants,  each  bearing  a  sacred  banner; 
immediately  behind  them  are  two  more  peasants,  who 
carry  between  them  a  large  painting  of  the  Savior.  Be- 
hind these  are  peasant  girls  bearing  icons  of  the  Madon- 
na and  disciples.  After  the  girls  comes  the  chief  priest, 
who  wears  upon  his  head  a  golden  cross  and  is  clothed  in 
rich  vestments  of  the  church.  Behind  him  marches  the 
long  line  of  peasants,  or  all  who  desire  to  participate  in 
the  services.  The  procession  thus  formed  marches  to  a 
bridge  across  the  Neva  River,  which  has  been  decorated 
fortheoccitsion  with  trees,  flowers  and  interlaced  branches 
of  evergreens.  Upon  reaching  this  bridge  a  short  prayer 
is  offered  by  the  priest,  who  then  signals  a  blessing  of 
the  waters,  which  is  followed  by  those  bearing  banners, 
crosses  and  icons,  dipping  them  into  the  river  three  times, 
which  is  supposed  to  impart  a  miraculous  influence.  Im- 
mediately upon  this  being  done  hundreds  jump  into 


466  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

stream,  while  other  hundreds  fill  bottles,  jugs  and  barrels 
with  the  precious  water  that  is  now  believed  to  possess  a 
magic  power  to  heal  any  and  every  ailment  of  humanity  ; 
many  invalids  are  carried  down  to  the  water  and  sub- 
merged, fully  possessed  of  the  belief  that  their  afflictions 
will  be  cured,  while  those  who  are  in  sound  bodily  health 
bathe  their  heads  to  keep  off  disease.  These  waters, 
which  must  be  taken  on  the  day  they  are  blessed  if  their 
potency  be  desired,  are  supposed  to  possess  miraculous 
virtues  for  one  year,  and  no  amount  of  evidence  could 
shake  the  faith  of  a  peasant  in  this  belief,  although  I 
could  not  find  any  peasant  who  kneAv  of  a  cure  having 
been  effected  by  using  the  water. 

The  next  most  important  holiday  in  Russia  is  St. 
George's  Day,  which  occurs  on  the  23d  of  April,  and  is 
a  celebration  in  honor  of  Russia's  patron  saint.  So 
severe  are  the  winters  in  northern  Russia  that  it  is  custom- 
ary to  keep  cows  and  sheep  stabled  from  November 
first  until  St.  George's  Day,  when  they  are  turned  out  of 
doors,  their  release  being  made  a  chief  part  of  the  holiday 
ceremonials.  On  the  morning  of  this  day  the  peasants 
arrange  tables,  spread  with  white  cloths,  about  the  stables 
containing  their  domestic  animals,  upon  which  they  place 
bread,  water  and  eggs.  Around  these  tables  stand  the 
peasants,  male  and  female,  each  provided  with  an  icon  of 
some  saint,  and  at  the  stable  door  stands  a  priest  who 
bears  a  large  banner  having  four  portraits  painted  upon 
it  and  also  a  picture  representing  St.  George  killing  the 
dragon.  Beside  him  is  a  basin  of  water  which  he  con- 
secrates by  dipping  into  it  a  small  cross  three  times. 
Afterpreachinga  short  sermon  the  priest  opens  the  stable 
doors,  the  cows  and  sheep  come  out  before  him,  and  he 
sprinkles  them  with  holy  water,  from  the  basin,  with  a 
little  bruih. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA, 


I  do  not  remember  of  having  ever  heard  of  a  custom 
among  any  people  so  singular,  if  not  paganish,  as  that 
which  prevails  among  the  poorer  classes  in  Russia,  and 
known  as  Recollection  Monday.  Feasting  among  the 


tombs,  I  am  aware,  was  once  a  custom  among  the  Jews, 
who  did  it  as  a  mark  of  respect  for  their  departed  friends, 
as  jilso  do  the  lower  classes  of  Irish  hold  "  wakes,"  but 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA,  469 

\ 

just  for  what  purpose  they  cannot  themselves  tell.  But 
the  custom,  as  now  observed  in  Kussia,  is  much  more 
radical  in  character  than  either  the  Irish  or  ancient  Jewish 
ceremonies.  The  celebration  of  Kecollection  Monday  is 
begun  by  services  of  mass  held  in  the  various  chapels,  at 
the  conclusion  of  which  a  large  amount  of  food,  consist- 
ing of  Easter  eggs,  salt,  cake  and  fruit,  which  is  brought 
into  the  chapel  sin  baskets,  is  taken  forward  to  the  priest 
for  his  blessing.  Wine  and  vodka  are  not  a  necessary 
part  of  the  provisions  used  at  the  ceremonies,  but  con- 
siderable quantities  are  nevertheless  provided.  After  the 
chapel  services  are  finished  processions  are  formed,  headed 
by  priests,  which  march  to  the  cemeteries  and  there  be- 
gin lamentations  for  the  dead.  But  this  manifestation 
of  grief  very  soon  changes  into  a  wild,  bacchanalian 
revelry;  men,  women  and  children  drink  vodka  until 
their  condition  is  shocking  to  civilization  ;  ribaldry,  lewd- 
ness,  and  demoralizing  actions  of  almost  every  kind 
characterize  those  who  visit  the  cemeteries  on  these  occa- 
sions. The  priests,  drunk  and  boisterous  like  their 
parishioners,  stagger  around  with  tapers  and  crosses, 
soliciting  fees  for  reciting  prayers  over  the  graves  ;  these 
priests,  provided  they  are  sober  enough,  will  pray  fifteen 
minutes  over  any  grave  for  the  sum  of  fifty  copecks 
(twenty-five  cents),  this  being  the  basis  of  the  regular 
tariff  fixed  by  them  ;  the  dead  who  have  no  friends  will- 
ing to  pay  this  amount,  have  to  sleep  without  prayers 
and  take  their  chances  of  being  burned. 

I  have  mentioned  a  middle  class  in  Russia,  but  in  re- 
ality there  are  only  two  classes,  the  aristocratic  and  the 
peasant.  Russian  subjects,  as  a  rule,  are  either  very 
poor  or  exceedingly  rich,  so  that  in  my  references  to  a  mid- 
dle class  I  intended  to  designate  what  in  America  we 
call  the  office-holding  people.  But  in  Russia  this  means 
30 


470 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


more  than  it  does  in  America,  for  officers  are  much  more 
numerous  in  that  country,  and  being  in  the  government 
service,  even  though  they  may  be  ever  so  poor,  yet  they 


are  accorded  a  position  in  society  above  the  peasantry, 
but  not  equal  to  the  aristocracy  ;  thus  we  can  only  desig- 
nate them  as  the  middle  class  ex  qfficio. 

It  is  a  fact  no  less  singular  than  unreasonable,  that  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  471 

poor  pay  nearly  all  the  taxes  in  Russia ;  the  rich  mer- 
chant in  St.  Petersburg  or  the  owner  of  municipal  real 
estate  pays  no  taxes  to  the  government ;  the  city  revenue 
is  of  course  derived  from  city  property,  but  the  government 
receives  mot  a  dollar,  except  as  a  voluntary  gift,  from 
any  source  but  that  of  agriculture.  When  Alexander  II. 
granted  freedom  to  the  serfs  and  made  the  Empire  as- 
sume a  debt  of  $50,000,000,  to  pay  the  noblemen  for 
their  manumitted  slaves,  he  did  not  change  the  revenue 
laws,  so  that  the  liberated  peasants  are  made  to  purchase 
their  own  freedom .  Every  acre  of  land  in  Russia  and  every 
product  of  the  soil  is  assessed  annually  and  taxed  upon  a 
basis  fixed  to  meet  the  annual  budget.  In  all  other  occupa- 
tions there  is  exemption  from  tax.  A  man  who  desires 
to  engage  in  business  goes  to  the  proper  bureau  and  de- 
clares his  intentions  ;  he  is  there  furnished  with  a  license, 
but  he  cannot  pursue  any  business  except  that  for  which 
his  license  is  issued,  under  a  severe  penalty  ;  thus,. if  one 
secures  a  license  to  follow  tailoring  the  person  so  privi- 
leged cannot  engage  in  any  other  vocation  without  sur- 
rendering his  license  as  a  tailor  and  taking  out  a  new 
privilege  ;  his  place  of  business  cannot  be  ('hanged  either 
without  first  notifying  the  police  ;  neither  can  a  man 
move  his  place  of  residence  without  complying  with  the 
same  conditions.  Merchants  who  are  worth  $50,000, 
and  who  do  a  business  of  the  same  amount  annually  may 
become  members  of  the  first  "guild"  upon  an  annual 
payment  to  the  government  of  $300.  Those  who  are 
worth  $25,000  and  do  an  annual  busines  e(juai  to  that 
amount  may  become  members  of  the  second  "  guild" 
by  paying  annually  the  sum  of  $150.  These  "guilds" 
are  established  for  the  recognition  of  the  aristocracy 
similar  to  those  which  once  obtained  in  England.  Mem- 
bers of  the  first  guild  wear  a  uniform  to  distinguish  their 


472 


•RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.     .  473 

rank  ;  this  uniform  is  more  showy  than  that  worn  by  a 
Russian  general ;  the  cloth  is  a  navy  blue,  the  pants 
having  a  gold  stripe  down  the  leg,  while  the  coat  and 
vest  are  embroidered  with  gold  cord,  and  on  the  shoul- 
ders are  immense  epaulettes  of  cord  and  tinsel.  These 
merchants  are  invited  to  the  court  balls,  but  may  not 
personally  address  the  Emperor ;  they  must  content 
themselves  with  viewing'  royalty  and  with  being  enter- 
tained in  the  palace. 

Society  in  St.  Petersburg  has  about  it  more  punctilio 
than  anywhere  in  the  world  ;  it  is  surrounded  by  a  very 
high  wall,  and  may  be  reached  only  by  those  having 
magic  keys ;  an  introduction  will  not  suffice,  as  it  does 
in  America,  for  every  one  who  seeks  admission  must  have 
the  requisites  of  discreetness,  wealth  and  bizarre  manners. 
Catharine  II.  was  the  first  to  organize  society  in  St.  Peters- 
burg, and  since  her  character  is  pretty  generally  known, 
we  may  readily  surmise  the  kind  of  stamp  she  impressed 
it  with.  There  is  in  the  Hermitage  a  tablet,  which  is 
generally  concealed  from  view  by  a  curtain,  upon  which 
is  engraved  the  "ten  commandments"  of  Catharine, 
which  she  enforced  upon  those  who  attended  her  parties. 

Literally  translated  they  read  as  follows  : 

1.  Leave  outside  your  rank,  your  hat,  and  especially 
your  sword. 

2.  Leave    outside   your   right    of    precedence,   your 
pride,  and  everything  akin  to  them. 

3.  Be  gay,  but  do  not  damage  anything. 

4.  Sit,  stand  or  walk,  regardless  of  any  person. 

5.  Talk  calmly,  and  not  too  loud,  so  as  not  to  make 
the  head  and  ears  of  others  ache. 

6.  Discuss  without  anger  or  excitement. 

7.  Neither  sigh  nor  yawn,  nor  make  others  gloomy 
or  dull-spirited. 

8.  Let  all  join  in  any  innocent  game  proposed. 


474  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

9.  Eat  whatever  is  sweet  and  good,  but  drink  mod- 
erately in  order  that  every  body's  head  may  be  level  upon 
leaving. 

10.  Tell  no  tales  out  of  school ;  that  which  goes  in 
at  one  ear  must  go  out  at  the  other  before  leaving  the 
room. 

Punishments  provided  for  a  transgression  of  any  of 
these  rules  were  as  follows  : 

1 .  Any  person  transgressing  against  any  one  of  these 
rules  shall,  if  two  witnesses  appear  against  him,  drink 
one  glass  of  cold  water,  not  excepting  the  ladies,  and  read 
aloud  one  page  of  the  "Telemachiade,"    (written  by  a 
Russian  poet  named   Tretiakofsky,  after  whom  Tapper 
was  probably  fashioned . ) 

2.  Whoever,  during  the  same   evening,  acts  contrary 
to  any  three  of  these  rules,  shall  commit  to  memory  six 
lines  of  the  same  work. 

3.  Whoever  breaks  the  tenth  rule  slitill  not  again  be 
admitted. 

There  was  no  austerity  in  any  of  these  prohibitions 
except  the  last,  which  was  made  to  protect  the  character 
of  those  who  attended  ;  but  though  well  intended  it  did 
not  fully  serve  the  purpose.  If  it  were  not  for  the  fact 
that  the  stories  are  too  shocking  for  publication  I  could 
fill  a  book  with  well  attested  tales  of  flagrant  conduct 
peculiar  to  these  recherche  entertainments  of  Catharine 
II.  ;  I  heard  scores  of  them  in  St.  Petersburg,  but  they 
are  more  conducive  to  morals  when  forgotten. 

Dancing  is  a  favorite  recreation  in  Russia,  indulged  in 
by  all  classes,  and  carried,  in  some  instances,  to  great 
excess.  While  in  Moscow  I  was  taken  to  a  public  house 
where  there  was  a  big  ball,  and  on  this  occasion  I  had 
the  pleasure  of  witnessing  a  genuine  Russian  dance. 
Among  the  wealthier  people  very  little  dancing  is  seen 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA, 


475 


47()  IIUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

that  is  not  common  to  Americans,  as  French  masters  hold 
schools  in  St.  Petersburg  and  Moscow,  and  the  people 
naturally  adopt  the  French  style.  But  at  this  public  ball 
there  were  several  gentlemen  with  whom  my  guide  was 
intimately  acquainted,  and  my  request,  through  him,  to 
have  the  gentlemen  execute  the  Russian  dance,  was  com- 
plied with  by  four  couples.  They  advanced  to  the  cen- 
ter of  the  room,  and,  courtesying,  one  couple  led  off 
with  a  varsouvienne  step,  which  was  soon  changed  to 
lancers  time.  The  other  couples  followed,  and  then  they 
took  positions,  so  that  the  respective  partners  faced  each 
other ;  now  succeeded  a  movement  which  language  is 
wholly  inadequate  to  describe  ;  the  men  crouched  down  in 
what  appeared  to  be  a  very  painful  attitude,  as  if  sitting 
on  their  heels  ;  in  this  position  they  would  kick  first  with 
one  leg  and  then  with  the  other,  without  changing  their 
attitude,  and  continued  this  violent  exercise  until  exhaus- 
tion was  plainly  manifested.  During  this  time  the  ladies 
waltzed  around  their  partners  and  tossed  their  heads 
from  side  to  side  in  a  coquettish  manner.  After  the 
crouching  movements  were  concluded  the  men  arose  and 
balanced  before  their  partners,  then  placing  their  arms 
akimbo,  they  began  an  awkward  shuffling,  or  rather 
stamping,  something  like  the  Sioux  war  dance,  and  \ 
doing  this  they  tossed  their  heads,  stuck  out  their  tongues, 
pouted  and  looked  cross-eyed. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

the  summer  season  St.  Petersburg  is  almost 
deserted,  all  the  better  classes  taking  up  their  residence  in 
suburban  places,  the  most  popular  and  fashionable  resort 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIT5KRIA 


477 


\t 


478  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

being  Parvelosk,  which  is  situated  eighteen  miles  out  of 
the  metropolis.  The  ground  on  which  Parvelosk  is  built 
was  donated  by  the  Grand  Duke  Constantine,  who  erected 
a  music-stand,  and  laid  out  about  two  thousand  acres  of 
the  surrounding  ground  in  a  park,  which  has  since  been 
improved  at  an  expense  of  $1,00.0,000.  Near  this  park 
are  hundreds  of  beautiful  cottages,  in  the  midst  of  green 
lawns  studded  with  flowers  and  statuary ;  parties  are 
given  nearly  every  night  in  these  summer  mansions,  a 
few  of  which  I  had  the  pleasure  of  attending.  No  people 
are  so  polite  and  fashionable  as  the  wealthy  class  of 
Russia,  and,  I  may  add,  that  not  even  in  Paris  is  there 
such  abandon,  and  perfect  freedom,  exhibited  as  at  a 
Russian  ball. 

About  the  first  of  October  those  who  have  summered 
in  rural  towns  begin  to  return  to  St.  Petersburg,  and 
directly  after  this  date  "the  fashionable  season  opens  in 
the  city.  There  arc  two  streets  in  St.  Petersburg  which 
can  hardly  be  surpassed  for  beauty,  one  of  these,  Nevskoi 
Prospekt,  runs  north  and  south,  from  the  Admiralty 
building  to  the  Alexander  Nevskoi  Monastery",  a  distance 
of  three  miles,  and  is  as  level  as  a  floor ;  the  street  is  one 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  broad,  fifty  foot  of  it  being  paved 
with  six-sided  blocks,  set  in  like  the  Nicholson  pavement 
except  that  there  are  no  interstitial  strips  and  fillings  of 
gravel,  the  blocks  being  laid  in  direct  contact ;  this  makes 
a  driveway  of  rare  excellence,  and,  indeed,  such  as  cannot 
be  found  anywhere  else.  The  other  noted  street  is  the  Bol- 
shaya  Moscowa,  or  great  Moscow,  which  runs  east  and 
west  about  two  miles.  It  is  constructed  like  the  Nevs- 
skoi  Prospekt,  and  both  streets  arc  lined  with  line  build- 
ings. These  are  the  favorite  resorts  of  fashionable  people 
with  fine  carriages,  troikas,  and  magnificent  sleighs. 
These  conveyances  are  sumptuously  made,  and  are  gen- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


479 


I   -4 


480  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

erallj  drawn  by  black  horses  in  beautiful  caparisons 
decorated  with  gold  and  silver,  while  in  the  semi-circle  of 
the  douga  are  a  dozen  silver  bells  that  merrily  jingle  and 
fill  the  air  with  cheery  music.  There  are  also  many  drives 
through  Alexander  Park,  around  the  suburbs  of  St.  Peters- 
burg, and  over  the  long,  broad  wooden  bridges  which 
span  the  Neva. 

When  winter  fairly  sets  in,  early  m  November,  the 
court  balls  are  given,  and  after  the  Neva  freezes  over  an 
ice  palace  is  built  every  year  on  the  frozen  stream.  This 
palace  is  a  thing  of  sucji  great  beauty  that  it,  is  worth 
many  miles  of  travel  to  see.  It  is  built  of  translucent 
blocks  of  ice  two  feet  thick,  which,  upon  being  laid  to- 
gether, are  solidified  by  pouring  water  over  the  outside 
and  inside  walls.  The  roof  and  ceiling  are  also  made  of 
ice,  and  the  architecture  of  the  whole  is  very  beautiful. 
The  interior  is  elegantly  furnished  with  furniture  taken 
from  the  Winter  Palace,  magnificent  chandeliers  are  sus- 
pended from  the  ceiling,  golden  sconses  are  set  in  the 
Avails,  and  luxurious  carpets  cover  the  floors.  It  is  in 
this  beautiful,  fairy-like  palace  that  some  of  the  finest 
royal  balls  given  in  St.  Petersburg  by  the  Imperial  family 
are  held. 

Courtship,  marriage  and  domestic  life  in  Eussia  are 
radically  different  from  what  they  are  in  America.  As 
in  China,  the  Russians  conduct  their  love  affairs  largely 
by  proxy  :  not  because  of  any  peculiar  timidity,  but  in 
conformity  with  customs  which  have  prevailed  among 
them  from  time  immemorial.  Among  the  upper  classes 
there  are  many  very  beautiful  women,  with  forms  as 
graceful  as  may  be  seen  among  the  Jiaut  ton  promenaders 
on  the  Avenue  del' Opera  in  Paris  ;  but  among  the peasantry 
beauty  is  almost  as  rare  as  philosopher  stones  ;  not  only 
are  their  faces  coarse,  flabby  and  devoid  of  delicate  color, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


481 


but  their   forms   are   vulgarly  repulsive,  every  develop- 
ment tending:  towards  shapeless  obesity  ;  with  them  mod- 


— .  , 


A  RUSSIAN  COURTSHIP. 


esty,  too,  is  an  unknown  quality,  while    untidiness   is  a 
peculiarity  of  them  all.     Yet,  no  more  attractive  swains 


482  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM 

fall  iii  love  with  these  mottled  maidens,  woo  them  in  a 
cholicy  sort  of  way,  and  marry  them  without  manifesting 
any  special  pleasure  over  the  event.  In.  Russia  as  in  Ger- 
many, there  is  a  great  love  for  accordions  and  concer- 
tinas ;  as  the  Spanish  lover  beguiles  his  inamorata  with 
dulcet  notes  trumnicd  on  a  guitar,  so  does  the  Russian 
peasant  persuade  his  favorite  to  some  secluded  bower, 
and  there  puffs  into  her  ears  with  the  bellows  of  his  ac- 
cordion some  tune  which  he  calculates  will  swell  her 
heart.  But  however  greatly  he  may  surcharge  her  with 
love's  melody,  or  however  eager  he  may  be  to  procure 
an  admission  of  her  tender  feelings,  he  will  smother  the 
desire  and  abide  the  customs  of  his  country.  He  there- 
fore goes  home  to  his  father,  to  whom  he  declares  his 
love  and  desire  to  many;  the  father  then  invites  the 
parents  of  his  son's  flame  to  take  tea  ;  this  invitation 
being  accepted,  the  father  cunningly  broaches  the  subject 
of  marriage  and  at  length  speaks  plainly  of  his  son's 
desire ;  the  matter  is  arranged  entirely  between  the  old 
folks,  but  if  either  of  them  objects,  then  there  can  be  no 
marriage,  for  young  people  in  Russia  never  disobey  their 
parents. 

There  is  another  custom  in  Russia  no  less  peculiar  than 
the  courtship  just  described;  it  is  in  using  a  "match- 
maker" to  arrange  marriages.  This  personage  is  a  very 
important  one,  being  a  professional  body,  whose  chief 
occupation  is  dividing  titles  ;  that  is  securing  for  poor  but 
titled  lords  well  dowered  butuntitled  ladies,  for  it  should 
not  be  forgotten  that  all  the  world  is  in  a  scramble  for 
titles,  however  empty  and  unprofitable  they  are  in  fact. 

The  accompanying  engraving,  made  from  FedotofFs 
celebrated  painting  entitled  the  Svakha — Matchmaker — 
conveys  a  comprehensive  idea  of  her  employment ;  briefly 
described,  and  using  terms  employed  by  the  Russians,  this 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


483 


picture  reads  thus  :  The  man  in  the  caftan  (the  long  coat 
worn  by  the  middle  and  poorer  classes  in  Russia)  is  evi- 
dently a  moujik  parvenu,  who  has  been  fishing  with  a 


golden  bait  for  a  husband  of  rank  superior  to  his  own  for 
his  tseeplonok — chicken  ;  a  "poulet  engraisse,"  if  money 
can  make  her  so.  The  fortunate  svakha,  not  less  con- 


481:  11USSIAX  NIHILISM- AXD 

tented  than  the  happy  parents,  is  come  to  announce  the 
polkovnik  (colonel),  who  has  consented  to  he  a  suitor  for 
the  fair  one;  and  the  officer -who,  nothing  diffident,  has 
come  to  take  the  offered  prize,  is  giving  the  last  stroke  to 
a  well-cherished  moustache.  Both  the  mother  of  the 
maiden  and  the  syakka  hold,  displayed  in  their  palms,  a 
nasavoi-platok  (nose-handkerchief),  according  to  the  idea 
of  such  persons  that  the  exhibition  of  that  article-is  a 
sine  qua  non  of  good  breeding.  On  ti  side-table  refresh- 
ments are  awaiting  the  guests, the  Tcoulibayalca  (  fish-cake) , 
favorite  dish  of  the  middle  classes,  being  the  principal 
attraction.  The  servants,  who  are  whispering  in  the  cor- 
ner, and  who  address  their  -moujik-master  as  an  equal, 
with  "  Thou/'  in  spite  of  his  wealth,  are  as  much  inter- 
ested in  the  event  as  their  Icazein  (master)  or  the  mistress 
with  \\QY  pavoynik  (head-dress),  which  gives  her  such  an 
important  appearance.  The  young  lady's  apparent  dis 
tress  is  more  than  probably  feigned.  To  complete  the 
ensemble,  Fedotoff  has  painted  a  cat  stroking  or  washing 
with  its  paw  the  side  of  the  head  nearest  the  door  by 
which  a  visiter  is  expected,  as  intelligent  cats  are  sup- 
posed to  do  by  anticipation. 

I  did  not  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  marriage  per- 
formed while  in  Russia,  but  from  an  English  gentleman 
who  has  lived  in  St.  Petersburg  for  the  past  fifteen  years, 
I  obtained  a  description  of  the  ceremony  which  he  at- 
tended at  the  marriage  of  his  chambermaid,  and  which 
he  described  to  me  as  follows  : 

"I  never  had  but  one  married  servant  in  my  house- 
hold, and  she  was  a  chambermaid  named  Macha — a  nice, 
pretty,  and  obliging  peasant  girl,  who  had  been  with  us 
for  about  two  years.  For  some  time  I  had  observed  that 
she  seemed  discontented,  and  on  one  occasion,  asking  her 
why  she  was  not  as  gay  as  usual,  she  replied  that  she  was 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  485 

nearly  eighteen  years  old  and  not  yet  married.  Had  I 
been  a  single  man  I  might  have  had  serious  ideas  of  propos- 
ing myself  to  such  a  pretty  girl ;  but  I  simply  persuaded  her 
to  bear  up  under  her  misfortune,  and  to  bide  God's  time 
for  a  husband. 

I  had  quite  forgotten  the  circumstance,  when  one  night 
late,  hearing  a  great  disturbance  down  in  the  servants' 
offices,  I  went  to  see  what  was  the  matter.  As  I  entered 
the  servants'  room  all  was  in  confusion,  boxes  were 
being  opened,  bundles  ransacked,  dresses  measured,  boots 
thrown  about,  under-linen  inspected,  beads  counted  (the 
Russian  costume  is  never  worn  without  as  many  as  six  to 
eight  rows  of  beads  round  their  throat),  stockings  exam- 
ined, bed-linen  animadverted  upon,  jewelry  valued,  go- 
loshes felt,  and  fur  mantles  tried  on.  After  a  glance  at 
these  things,  I  turned  my  gaze  upon  the  occupants  of  the 
room.  There  were  three  or  four  women  servants  be- 
longing to  the  house,  a  couple  of  respectable  peasant 
women,  dressed  in  the  usual  red  chintz  short  petticoats 
and  leather  fur-lined  mantles,  with  brilliantly  trimmed 
hoods  on  their  heads,  and  three  peasant  men  ;  these  last 
were  all  fine  muscular-looking  fellows,  with  their  high 
knee  boots,  velvet  breeches,  and  red-and-blue  shirts, 
worn  loosely  outside  the  nether  garment,  something  like 
our  old  English  mock-frocks,  except  their  being  shorter, 
and  worn  with  a  many  coloured  ceinture.  All  the  persons 
there  present  seemed  to  be  thoroughly  interested  in  the 
exhibition  of  clothes  going  on  ;  but  the  youngest  of  the 
three  men  showed  a  slight  restlessness  as  box  after  box 
was  hurriedly  opened,  and  the  contents  of  each,  meeting 
with  apparent  approval  from  the  elder  among  the  peas- 
ants, elicited  from  him  grunts  of  satisfaction  and  digs  in 
the  ribs  for  the  young  man. 

At  lust,  when  all  had  been  well  examined,  Macha,  the 
31 


486  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

chambermaid,  who  all  this  time  had  been  doing  much 
the  harder  part  of  the  work  in  opening  and  expatiating 
on  the  merits  of  each  article,  received  a  hearty  slap  on 
the  shoulder  from  the  fine  old  peasant  there  present,  who 
in  his  own  native  language  wished  her  "much  happi- 
ness." On  this  the  young  man  arose  from  the  bench 
where  he  had  been  sitting  and,  naming  a  day  in  that  same 
week  wherein  we  then  were,  slouched  out  of  the  cell  or 
cave  (as  one  might  well  call  the  apartments  of  the  ser- 
vants) to  have,  we  may  suppose,  some  of  his  favorite 
"  vodka"  (the  usual  Russian  spirit  drunk  by  the  peas- 
ants).  This  scene  that  I  had  been  witnessing  was  neither 
more  nor  less  than  a  preliminary  before  marriage.  The 
sturdy  old  peasant  there  was  the  father  of  the  young  fel- 
low who  had  just  gone  out,  and  he  had  come  up  from 
the  country  to  find  a  wife  for  his  son.  He  had  heard  of 
this  young  woman  from  a  traveling  peddler  who  went 
every  three  months  to  Moscow  to  replenish  his  pack,  and 
who  knew  half  the  girls  by  name  who  were  in  want  of 
husbands.  On  the  strength  of  this  information  from 
the  peddler  the  old  peasant  (the  father  of  the  bridegroom- 
elect),  his  wife  and  son  had  come  to  judge  for  themselves 
as  to  the  eligibility  of  Mancha's  goods  and  chattels  ;  but, 
if  they  had  found  any  article  or  articles  wanting  in  the 
bride's  trousseau,  there  would  have  been  no  marriage. 
Everything  depended  upon  the  bride's  clothes  ;  but  all 
was  there,  even  to  the  154  rubles  of  the  hard-earned  sav- 

I 

ings  of  the  peasant-girl.  So  she  was  to  be  married  !  and 
she  considered  herself  fortunate  in  having  a  husband 
given  her  ;  not  that  she  liked  him,  for  she  had  only  seen 
him  for  the  first  time  that  day.  He  and  his  father,  the 
old  peasant,  lived  far  away  in  the  country;  but  as  the 
spring  was  coming  on,  and  the  old  father  would  want 
somebody  beside  his  own  wife  to  help  to  prepare  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  487 

earth  for  the  seed  to  be  sown ,  the  best  thing  was  to  get  a 
wife  for  his  son,  and  thus  secure  the  help  of  another  pair 
of  hands  during  seed  time  without  the  expense  of  extra 
wages.  So  Mancha,  our  chambermaid,  was  to  be  mar- 
ried. She  was  happy  as  a  bird.  For  a  long  time  she 
had  stood  much  chaff  as  to  being  an  old  maid  ;  but  now 
she  was  going  to  be  married,  and  the  "  Benediction,"  (a 
Russian  rite  preceding  marriage)  and  wedding  day  had 
already  been  fixed  by  the  future  husband  himself.  Now 
she  could  make  fun  of  others,  for  in  Russia  it  is  a  seri- 
ous thing  for  a  girl  if  she  is  not  married  as  soon  as  the 
law  permits — that  is,  at  sixteen. 

Friday  came,  the  day  of  * '  Benediction . ' '  Macha  went 
about  her  work  as  usual ;  she  neither  seemed  anxious  nor 
nervous.  As  she  had  been  a  good  servant,  we  were  all 
going  to  honor  her  by  appearing  at  the  ceremony.  At 
about  7  p.  M.  a  small  table,  covered  with  a  white  cloth, 
was  arranged  in  one  corner  of  our  large  family  dining- 
room,  two  or  three  images  of  saints,  ornamented  with 
flowers  and  precious  stones,  were  placed  on  the  table, 
together  with  a  large  round  sort  of  bread  or  cake,  which 
was  to  play  no  mean  part  in  the  ceremony.  A  few 
minutes  later  the  steps  of  the  priest  were  heard  on  the 
marble  staircase,  together  with  the  heavier  step  of  the 
peasants'  feet,  and  in  another  moment  the  room  was  full 
of  the  bride's  friends,  arrayed  in  the"  most  gorgeous 
chintz  dresses,  and  of  the  bridegroom's  mates,  dressed  in 
the  usual  outdoor  black  leather  "pelisse,"  lined  with 
sheepskins.  All  those  friends  and  relations  belonging  to 
the  lady  in  whose  house  the  ceremony  was  taking  place 
stood  immediately  behind  the  priest.  After  everything 
was  arranged  in  place,  a  slight  stir  and  bustle  was  heard, 
and,  the  crowd  making  way,  the  future  bride  came  sail- 
ing in,  beautifully  attired  in  a  salmon-colored  silk  and 


488  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

tulle  dress,  which  her  mistress  had  worn  at  the  very  ball 
given  in  honor  of  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  and  his  Imperial 
wife  by  the  town  of  Moscow.  How  splendid  all  her 
friends  thought  her !  She  had  innumerable  rows  of 
pearls  around  her  neck  and  arms  ;  her  veil  was  of  net ; 
but  though  the  dress  was  magnificent,  and  must  have  been 
very  effective  when  worn  by  a  lady,  yet  on  this  peasant 
woman,  with  her  arms  and  hands  and  sun-burnt  com- 
plexion, it  looked  ghastly  and  made  the  wearer  appear 
repulsive.  She  passed  awkwardly  up  the  sails  and  took 
her  place  before  the  effigies  of  saints,  or  "  images,"  as 
they  are  called,  and  immediately  after,  her  future  hus- 
band (who  seemed  half-frightened)  slipped  from  the 
crowd,  followed  by  his  father,  and  took  up  his  position 
on  the  right  side  of  the  bride.  Then  the  ceremony  of 
"Benediction"  commenced;  it  lasted  about  forty  min- 
utes, the  priest  reading  and  chanting  together  with  his 
clerk  many  psalms  and  prayers,  while  the  future  man  and 
wife  continually  bowed  themselves  to  the  ground,  touch- 
ing the  floor  with  their  foreheads.  Then  the  round  cake 
of  bread  was  put  into  their  hands  by  the  priest,  and 
was  kissed  by  the  recipients,  afterwards  by  the  bride- 
groom's father,  and  then  again  by  the  bride's  mother, 
father  and  friends.  This  part  of  the  ceremony  is  to  show 
that  "bread  is  .life,  and  that  they  pray  they  may  ever 
have  bread  both  in  this  life  and  in  the  one  to  come." 

As  soon  as  the  priest  had  finished,  champagne  was 
brought  in  by  the  generosity  of  the  lady  of  the  house ; 
the  first  glass  was  handed  to  the  priest,  and  the  next  to 
the  engaged  couple,  who  now  remained  as  if  struck  dumb. 
As  soon  as  they  put  their  lips  to  it,  congratulations  pour- 
ed in  from  all  the  assembled  crowd,  who,  on  receiving 
an  acknowledgment  for  their  kind  wishes,  could  oblige 
them  to  kiss  each  other  as  often  as  they  were  told.-  Of 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  489 

course  everybody  did  so,  while  the  poor  unhappy  pair 
had  to  go  through  the  loving,  caressing  ceremony  as  if 
enjoying  it.  When  all  the  glasses  were  emptied  the 
priest  dismissed  the  happy  couple,  the  "  Benediction  " 
was  over,  and  now  nothing  but  "  Marriage  "  remained  to 
be  solemnized.  This  last  ceremony  was  to  be  performed 
on  the  following  Sunday,  so  that  acquaintance,  examina- 
tion of  wardrobe,  Benediction,  and  Marriage  would  be  all 
got  through  with  in  less  than  a  week.  The  Sunday  came, 
and  with  it  a  great  thaw  ;  the  distance  to  the  church  was  not 
far,  but  the  bride  could  not  go  in  her  thin  boots  even  ten 
steps,  so  an  "  Isvostchik"  was  called,  who  gently  placed 
the  future  bride  in  his  vehicle,  and  drove  her  to  the  church. 
There  the  ceremony  was  somewhat  long,  in  fact,  so  much 
so  that  the  bride's  cousin  was  unable  to  continue  holding 
the  wreath  over  her  head  throughout  the  whole  ceremony  ; 
he  was  relieved  by  another  peasant,  who  took  kindly  to 
the  task,  and  who  was  heard  to  mutter,  "  The  bride  is  a 
bonny  lass,  I'd  give  six  years  to  have  her  !"  After  the 
ceremony  all  the  party  adjaurned  to  a  public-house  or 
"Traktir,"  where  they  made  as  jolly  as  they  possibly 
could  with  five  or  six  quarts  of  "  vodka  "  for  the  men, 
and  as  many  quarts  of  quass,  or  what  the  French  call 
Limonade  des  Cochons,  for  the  women. 

This  then  is  the  usual  style  of  Eussian  marriages 
amongst  the  peasantry,  the  difference  being  only  that  in 
ordinary  cases,  where  the  lady  takes  no  interest  in  the 
persons  marrying,  the  ceremony  is  performed  in  the 
lower  regions  of  the  house,  and  the  bride  may  not  be  so 
elegantly  attired  as  was  our  Macha.  That  Macha  was 
well  married  according  to  Russian  ideas  I  have  no  doubt, 
but  would  it  not  have  been  better  had  she  married  the 
man  who  would  have  served  six  years  to  have  her?" 

Easter   customs   in  Russia  are  very   pretty,  this  day 


430 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  491 

being  observed  like  Christmas  or  New  Year  is  with  us.  * 
Easter  eggs,  which,  however,  are  not  colored,  are  used 
in  a  variety  of  ways  to  encourage  courtship.  "  Catching 
butterflies  "  is  a  peculiar  sport  of  Easter,  which  consists 
in  young  men  of  the  villages  going  about  on  snow-shoes, 
with  nets,  crying  out,  "  who'll  -be  my  butterfly;"  the 
idea  is  that  the  girl  who  is  first  seen  in  a  doorway  by  one 
who  carries  the  net  and  who  smiles  upon  him,  will  be- 
come his  wife. 

But  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  domestic  life  in  Russia  is 
generally  a  very  unpleasant  existence.  Among  the  peasan- 
try there  is  little  virtue  but  a  great  deal  of  vice.  Men 
and  women  are  both  prone  to  drink,  and  they  never  know 
anything  of  refinement.  A  peasant  thinks  very  much 
less  of  his  wife  than  of  his  horse,  because  he  can  easily 
obtain  the  former,  but  the  latter  he  must  pay  cash  for  ; 
this  is  the  way  he  looks  at  married  life.  During  my 
short  stay  in  St.  Petersburg,  I  saw  scores  of  men  beating 
their  wives  in  the  street  and  no  one  cared  to  interfere. 
One  particular  instance  I  witnessed  of  extreme  brutality, 
a  man  began  abusing  his  wife  who  made  no  complaint 
but  doggedly  hung  her  head  (I  suspected  that  she  was 
half  drunk),  whereupon  he  knocked  her  down  with  his 
fists  and  then  kicked  her  unmercifully ;  she  was  very 
badly  hurt  but  he  jerked  her  upon  her  feet  again  and 
then  squeezed  her  right  hand  until  the  bones  were  almost 
crushed  ;  she  screamed  with  pain  and  implored  him  to 
desist,  but  he  dragged  her  off  with  him  still  squeezing  her 
hand  and  occasionally  striking  her  in  the  face.  Although 
a  policeman  and  dozens  of  citizens  stood  by  watchingthe 
husband's  cruelty,  none  offered  to  interfere.  But  I  was 
assured  that  all  Russians  whip  their  wives,  which  I  am 
quite  prepared  to  believe  of  the  poorer  classes  ;  how 
could  we  expect  them  to  be  kind  and  affectionate  to  the 


492  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

wives  when  the  church,  which  is  all-powerful  and  influen- 
tial in  Russia,  teaches  that  women  have  no  souls  and  that 
their  proper  relation  to  man  is  that  of  an  inferior  being 
who  may  approach  him  only  in  subjection,  and  may  not 
dispute  any  of  his  acts  however  unjust  or  flagitious  ;  thus 
wives  in  Russia  are  hardly  as  well  cared  for  as  domestic 
animals,  and  their  labor  I  am  sure  is  much  greater. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

A  HISTORY  OF  THE  JEWISH  OUTRAGES  IN  RUSSIA. 

As  a  race  the  Jews  have  endured  more  persecutions 
than  any  other  people,  and  yet  they  have  always  been 
the  most  prosperous  and  homogenious.  There  are  several 
remarkable  race  peculiarities  about  them  which  may  be 
found  in  no  other  religious  sect,  chief  among  these  strange 
characteristics  being  their  tenacity,  whether  regarded  in 
a  religious  or  business  sense.  Everyday  we  meet  intelli- 
gent men,  who  may  have  been  raised  under  the  most 
pious  tutelage  and  had  their  youth  fully  saturated  with 
Christian  precepts,  going  about  denying  Christ,  but  how 
many  Jews,  in  all  history,  have  departed  from  their  faith 
and  accepted  Christ  as  the  promised  Messiah  ?  I  never  heard 
of  one.  Yet,  branded  with  contempt,  driven  from  homes 
which  their  own  industry~builded  ;  despoiled  of  their 
property  by  edicts  of  Christian  governments,  every  sem- 
blance of  personal  liberty  taken  from  them,  and  bur- 
dened with  special  taxes  that  was  but  another  name  for 
confiscation,  still,  the  Jews  have  prospered  in  every  land, 
under  all  circumstances,  as  no  other  people.  We  never 
see  a  Jewish  beggar,  never  hear  of  them  being  cared  for 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA .  493 

in  municipal  hospitals  or  poor  houses,  and  in  no  other 
way  do  they  become  burdens  to  the  State.  So  that  pros- 
perity, despite  all  adversities,  and  loyalty  to  their  ancient 
religion,  are  distinguishing  traits  in  the  Jewish  character. 

If  we  ask  why  the  Jews  have  been  so  remorselessly 
pursecuted  by  all  countries  in  which  they  have  sought  a 
home — excepting  in  America — we  are  brought  to  the  con- 
sideration of  a  problem  impossible  of  satisfactory  solu- 
tion. In  this  age  of  commerce  and  international  reci- 
procity, when  the  plowshare  has  superceded  the  sword, 
when  the  broad  principles  of  liberalism  have  taught  us 
to  respect  the  opinions  of  others,  even  though  they  should 
be  in  conflict  with  our  own,  it  is  a  matter  for  surprise  that 
there  should  develope  such  race  prejudices  among  people 
acknowledging  the  same  sovereign,  as  would  lead  to  per- 
sonal assaults  and  from  these  to  outrages  which  shame 
Russian  civilization. 

There  are  several  causes  operating  in  Russia  to  antago- 
nize the  relations  between  Russians  and  Jews.  When  1 
asked  Count  Tolstoi  for  an  explanation  of  the  outrages 
he  shrugged  his  shoulders,  blandly  extended  his  hands 
and  made  only  an  untranslatable  facial  expression.  I 
got  no  satisfaction  from  the  minister  and  therefore 
extended  my  inquiries  into  other  quarters,  with  better 
results.  In  the  early  part  of  1882  Alexander  III.  sent 
for  and  requested  an  interview  with  one  of  the  Roths- 
child bankers,  who  was  just  completing  a  magnificent 
residence  in  St.  Petersburg.  The  Czar  was  in  sore  need  of 
money  to  meet  the  budget  that  had  been  submitted,  so, 
rather  than  entrust  the  negotiation  of  a  loan  to  his  Chancel- 
lor or  Minister  of  Finance  he  concluded  that,  by  seeking 
a  personal  interview  with  Rothschild,  he  could  secure,  at 
a  moderate  rate  of  interest,  the  sum  required.  In  re- 
sponse to  the  Czar's  request  Rothschild  appeared  at  the 


494       %  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  ANU 

Peterhoff  Imperial  residence,  where  he  was  very  soon 
made  acquainted  with  the  Emperor's  wishes,  but  instead 
of  treating  the  request  for  a  loan  in  a  business  way  Roths- 
child took  advantage  of  the  occasion  to  express  a  strong 
disapproval  of  the  Jewish  outrages  that  had  already  taken 
place  in  southern  Russia,  and  then  had  the  temerity  to 
remind  the  Czar  that  it  was  a  Jew  to  whom  the  govern- 
ment had  come  for  financial  aid.  Without  defending  his 
policy  the  Czar  arose,  and  pointing  his  finger  toward  the 
door  said,  "There  is  the  exit,  be  gone  at  once,  and  I 
order  you  to  quit  Russia  entirely  ;  this  country  shall  not 
be  your  place  of  residence,  for  the  sight  of  you  would 
pollute  an  honest  man."  Rothschild  was  not  slow  to 
obey  the  peremptory  order,  and  his  unfinished  palace  in 
St.  Petersburg  is  now  for  sale  at  a  great  bargain.  This 
incident  may  serve  as  a  straw  to  indicate  from  whence 
the  wind  of  Jewish  oppression  blows.  But  there  is  an- 
other almost  equally  important  fact  having  a  direct  bear- 
ing upon  this  vexed  question  : 

Count  Ignatieff  came  to  the  office  of  Minister  of 
the  Interior  in  1880,  I  believe :  he  was  trusted  with 
carte  blanche  powers  because  he  ranked  next  to  Gortcha- 
koff  as  a  diplomatist ;  but  it  was  within  a  few  months 
after  his  acceptance  of  the  ministerial  port  folio  that 
fresh  outrages  were  reported  perpetrated  upon  the  Jews 
in  Poland  and  southern  Russia.  The  Count  was  expected 
to  punish  those  engaged  in  the  attack  and  for  a  time 
every  person  thought  he  would  bring  down  a  retributive 
justice  upon  the  heads  of  all  who  molested  the  Jews. 
This  idea  obtained  by  reason  of  the  Count's  issuing 
several  dreadful  orders  addressed  to  commanders  of 
troops  throughout  Russia,  ordering  them  to  punish  with- 
out mercy  all  Jew  baiters  ;  he  went  still  further,  and 
declared  that  he  intended  to  put  down  every  Jewish  out- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  495 

break  by  the  strong  force  and  law  at  his  command.  His 
violent  policy  thoroughly  alarmed  the  riotous  factions  for 
a  time,  but  as  none  of  these  laws  or  declarations  were 
put  into  effect  the  outrages  were  begun  again  and  week 
after  week  grew  more  horrifying.  The  Jews  were  not 
only  robbed  of  their  money  and  merchandise,  but  mobs 
entered  their  residences,  killed  their  little  children,  bru- 
tally and  lustfully  assaulted  the  females,  brained  the  men 
and  then  burned  the  desecrated  homes.  Ignatieff  con- 
tinued to  threaten,  but  he  never  punished,  until  finally  it 
was  currently  reported  that  he  secretly  connived  at  and 
encouraged  the  assaults  ;  not  only  was  it  so  reported  but, 
impressed  with  the  fact,  many  of  the  richest  Jews  in 
Russia  raised  a  purse  of  more  than  two  hundred  thousand 
roubles,  which  they  used  to  accomplish  his  removal.  How 
this  money  was  applied  I  did  not  learn,  but  my  informa- 
tion that  it  was  so  used  is  of  such  a  character  as  does  not 
admit  of  any  doubt.  Ignatieff,  we  know,  was  dismissed 
very  suddenly  and  at  a  time  when  he  had  planned  many 
changes  which  it  was  reported  had  been  approved  by  the 
Czar. 

Being  unable  to  obtain  any  satisfactory  information  in 
St.  Petersburg  concerning  the  Jews,  and  as  there  were  no 
records  from  which  official  data  could  be  had  descriptive 
of  the  outrages,  I  decided  to  visit  Warsaw,  in  Poland, 
because  several  outbreaks  had  occurred  in  that  vicinity, 
and  because  I  knew  Warsaw  to  be  very  largely  populated 
by  Jews.  Accordingly  I  went  to  Moscow  and  there  took 
the  train  for  Warsaw,  which  is  five  hundred  miles  distant. 
This  road  is  not  only  the  most  aggravating  line  on  which 
I  ever  travelled,  but  it  is  next  to  the  road  which  runs 
from  Moscow  to  Odessa,  and  I  am  told  that  travel  on  this 
hitter  line  is  worse  than  riding  a  country  pig  to  market. 
By  advice  of  a  gentleman  whose  acquaintance  I  had  form- 


496  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

ed  in  the  Holy  Mother  City,  upon  taking  passage  I  be- 
sought the  guard  of  a  first-class  van  and  gave  him  five 
roubles  not  to  put  any  other  passenger  in  with  me,  so  that 
I  might  be  the  sole  occupant  and  thus  be  enabled,  to 
stretch  out  on  the  seat  and  sleep.  A  little  explanation 
at  this  point  will  no  doubt  be  of  benefit  to  the  reader  :  in 
Russia,  as  in  all  Europe,  passenger  cars  are  made  in  com- 
partments, generally  four  in  each  car,  entrance  to  which 
is  made  at  as  many  side  doors  ;  the  guards  are  what  we 
call  conductors,  but  instead  of  there  being  one  in  charge 
of  an  entire  train,  as  in  this  country,  in  Russia  there  is  a 
guard  for  each  car.  The  guard  to  your  compartment  is 
your  keeper,  because,  as  you  enter  he  locks  the  door 
which  he  does  not  open  until  a  large  station  is  reached. 
There  are  no  sleeping  cars  run  on  the  line  between  Mos- 
cow and  Warsaw  for  fear,  perhaps,  that  the  passengers 
might  sleep  themselves  to  death.  Such  monotonous 
scenery,  a  level,  gray,  sandy,  weird  waste,  not  a  mole 
hill  even  to  relieve  the  surface,  and  when  a  fine  forest  is 
passed  you  instinctively  remark  on  its  striking  resem- 
blance to  the  others,  every  tree  being  apparently  of  the 
same  height,  diameter,  and  general  appearance.  The 
time  between  Moscow  and  Warsaw  is  fifty  hours,  but  it 
appears  like  an  age  in  the  earth's  life  and  development. 
At  every  little  station  the  train  stops  to  allow  train-hands 
and  passengers  to  take  tea  ;  when  it  is  ready  to  proceed 
again  the  chief  guard  blows  a  police  whistle  twice,  which 
is  answered  by  two  from  the  engine  ;  at  this  a  fellow  who 
stands  beside  a  switch  generally  one  hundred  yards  ahead 
of  the  engine,  blows  a  little  brass  horn  and  holds  up  a  fold- 
ed green  flag;  another  fellow  rings  a  gong,  ten  or  a 
dozen  guards  cry  out  "all  aboard,"  or  its  equivalent, 
the  doors  are  then  shut,  and  if  no  accident  occurs  the 
train  starts  off  like  an  old  man  suffering  from  hypochon- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA,  497 

dria  and  inflammatory  rheumatism.  At  every  road 
crossing  there  is  a  woman  standing  holding  out  her  green 
flag,  I  presume  to  let  the  engineer  know  that  the  coast  is 
clear,  but  then  this  seems  to  be  unnecessary,  for  the 
train  would  never  do  any  damage  to  anything  that  could 
crawl.  But  the  funniest  thing  about  railroading  in 
Eussia,  or  at  least  what  amused  me  most,  was  to  see 
how  the  axle  boxes  were  examined  ;  at  every  stopping 
place,  however  small,  and  utterly  regardless  of  the 
speed  at  which  we  had  been  creeping,  two  well-greased 
men  passed  along  the  train  with  hammers,  tamping  and 
oil,  sounded  each  wheel  and  critically  examined  for  hot 
boxes.  They  must  have  gotten  the  idea  of  hot  boxes 
from  the  road  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Moscow,  or 
else  read  about  them  in  foreign  journals,  for  I  am 
quite  sure  there  was  never  a  hot  box  on  the  Moscow 
and  Warsaw  road. 

We  stopped  one  hour  and  a  half  at  three  different 
places,  Smolensk,  Minsk  and  Brest ;  before,  we  had  stop- 
ped to  drink  tea,  but  at  these  cities  the  delay  was  made  to 
give  every  passenger  and  train-man  time  to  get  drunk, 
and  I  never  saw  such  an  industrious  use  of  opportunity 
made  as  on  these  occasions  ;  every  fellow  made  a  rush 
for  vodka,  which  was  kept  in  decanters  on  tables,  and 
distributed  by  women,  in  small  glasses  ;  in  about  fifteen 
minutes  I  was  the  only  sober  man  on  the  train ;  such 
yelling,  singing  and  carousal,  but  no  one  seemed  to  get 
mad  until  another  train  met  us  at  Minsk,  loaded  with 
soldiers.  The  troops  were  in  box-cars  and  their  first  sal- 
utations convinced  m,e  that  they,  too, were  drunk  ;  despite 
every  effort  made  by  their  officers  the  soldiers  got  out  of 
their  cars,  made  a  raid  on  the  station,  and  then  directed 
their  attention  to  about  one  dozen  of  our  passengers  who 
had  expressed  some  objections  to  the  high-handed  privil- 


498 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


eges  that  were  being  indulged  by  the  troops  ;  both  sides 
drew  up  their  forces  in  fine  style  and  then  began  a  tongue 


fight  which  for  virulence,  noise  and  froth  I  never  saw 
equaled,  but  with  all  their  vehement  gesturing,  neither 
party  advanced  beyond  their  original  stations,  so  that  a 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  499 

collision  was  avoided,  and  the  row,  once  so  threatening, 
became  only  a  farce  of  cowardice. 

In  making  the  trip  from  Moscow  to  Warsaw  I  was 
without  an  interpreter,  and  of  course  had  to  take  the 
blunt  end  of  every  obstacle.  I  had  learned  two  or  three 
words  of  Russian,  but  only  one  that  I  could  make  use  of 
while  railroading,  this  single  word  was  cht\  meaning  tea  ; 
thus,  whenever  I  reached  an  eating  station  I  would  run 
up  to  a  luncheon  counter,  cry  out  chi  and  then  pick  up 
whatever  I  saw  that  appeared  palatable.  But  a  diet  of 
tea,  brown  bread  and  Russian  cakes  becomes  discouraging 
after  a  time  and  I  resolved  to  extend  the  bill  of  fare.  I 
wanted  some  meat,  beef,  mutton,  veal,  chicken,  etc.,  but 
to  all  intents  and  purposes  I  was  a  deaf  mute.  An  idea 
came  to  me,  however,  when  we  reached  Brest  that  I  was 
not  slow  to  put  into  execution.  Seated  at  long  tables  in 
the  dining  room  were  fifty  or  sixty  Russians,  many  of 
whom  were  officers,  and  all  were  drinking  tea  and 
vodka,  or  munching  dry  cakes.  Calling  a  waiter  to  me 
I  gave  him  to  understand,  by  gesture,  that  I  wanted 
something,  which  something  I  indicated  by  rising  to  full 
height,  clapping  my  sides  three  times  and  then  crowing 
loud  enough  to  rattle  the  dishes.  Instantly  every  eye  in 
the  room  was  centered  on  me,  but  as  I  took  up  my  plate 
and  passed  it  to  the  waiter  he  comprehended  my  wishes 
and  soon  brought  me  a  piece  of  chicken.  All  those  at 
the  tables  now  understood  why  I  had  crowed,  and  such 
a  capital  joke  did  they  esteem  it  that  more  than  a  dozen 
came  over,  shook  my  hand,  laughed  immoderately  and 
then  proffered  me  bottles  of  wine  ;  thereafter  my  com- 
panions took  such  an  interest  in  providing  for  me  that 
they  anticipated  all  my  wants. 


500  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

I  reached  Warsaw  on  a  Sunday  afternoon  and  engaging 
a  carriage  drove  two  miles  or  more,  to  the  Hotel  Vic- 
toria. Warsaw  contains  a  population  of  350,000, 
(twenty-three  per  cent  of  which  are  Jews)  and  is  located 
on  the  Vistula  River,  a  pretty  stream,  large  enough  for 
a  considerable  commerce.  Nearly  one-half  the  town  is 
built  on  bottom  lands,  which  portion  is  so  foul  with 
dirty  people,  crazy-looking  houses  and  stinking  streets, 
that  mufflers  for  the  head  could  be  used  to  great  advan- 
tage by  respectable  persons  while  passing  through  it. 
That  portion  of  the  city  built  on  the  hill  presents  a  mediae- 
val appearance,  particularly  those  buildings  that  overlook 
the  river. 

I  was  now  in  Poland,  a  country  that  has  passed  through 
more  desperate  ordeals  than  any  other  nation  on  the 
globe ;  Warsaw,  her  ancient  capital,  that  has  been  the 
home  of  so  many  distinguished  heroes,  whose  streets 
have  been  channels  through  which  the  blood  of  thousands 
has  rushed,  and  the  scenes  of  massacres  that  are  too 
dreadful  for  contemplation  ;  here  have  flourished  a  peo- 
ple so  proud  that  rather  than  lose  their  identity  by  amal- 
gamation with  other  powers,  chose  to  sacrifice  themselves, 
and  die  in  the  blazonry  of  bravery,  freedom  and  the  his- 
tory they  had  made.  On  every  square  there  stands  some 
monument  commemorating  the  deeds  of  her  great  men, 
while  tablets  are  here  and  there  discovered  by  visitors, 
telling  in  simple  annals  of  bloody  deeds  on  the  spots  they 
mark.  Though  rent  by  three  powerful  nations,  Ger- 
many, Austria  and  Russia,  who  fastened  their  fangs  in 
poor  Poland  like  hungry  dogs  fighting  for  a  piece  of 
meat,  she  is  still  proud,  though  no  longer  glorious — a 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  501 

sick  lion  that  has  yet  a  brave  heart  but  cannot  defend 
itself. 

Poland  is  now  a  orovinee  of  Russia,  but,  true  to  her 
chivalric  character.,  she  refuses  to  assimilate  with  that 
nation.  There  are  only  two  Greek  churches  in  Warsaw, 
but  of  Lutherans  and  Catholics  there  are  many.  So  great 
is  the  hatred  for  Russia  that  Poland  refuses  to  adopt 
Muscovite  exchange  ;  copecks  and  roubles  are  compara- 
tively rare  in  Warsaw,  in  place  of  which  the  Poles  use  a 
little  coin  called  "  grozy,"  equivalent  to  one-half  cent, 
which  was  the  last  coinage  of  Poland,  in  1840. 

I  was  very  much  rejoiced  to  find  that  the  manager  of 
the  Hotel  Victoria  spoke  excellent  English,  and  as  he  was 
a  man  of  some  prominence  in  Warsaw,  his  services  were 
to  me  of  great  importance.  Through  him  I  obtained  an 
introduction  to  the  Mayor  and  also  to  some  other  impor- 
tant gentlemen  of  the  city,  who  afterwards  gave  me  such 
assistance  as  I  needed  to  secure  the  information  for  which 
I  had  visited  the  place.  Before  proceeding  with  my  in- 
vestigations I  accepted  an  invitation  from  the  Mayor,  who 
spoke  excellent  German  and  a  little  English,  to  view  the 
city  and  its  most  interesting  features.  Of  this  drive  I 
have  a  very  pleasant  remembrance,  for  never  shall  I  for- 
get my  visit  to  Lazienski  Park  and  Wilanow  Palace, 
which  are  a  few  miles  out  of  Warsaw,  and  reached  by 
driving  over  a  very  rough  road,  but  they  are  the  most 
pleasing  sights  I  witnessed  in  all  Europe.  In  Lazienski 
Park  is  the  renowned  palace  of  Poniatowski,  consisting 
of  two  buildings,  which  face  each  other,  four  hundred 
yards  apart,  and  both  are  built  on  the  margin  of  a  hike 
that  is  grandly  beautiful.  Though  very  old  the  palaces 
are  kept  in  perfect  repair,  and  are  furnished  in  a  manner 
befitting  the  richest  and  most  powerful  potentate.  But 
though  the  rooms  in  these  palaces  are  magnificent  a.s 
32 


502  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

wealth  can  make  them,  I  was  attracted  particularly  to  the 
ruins  of  a  theatre  which,  two  hundred  years  ago,  stood 
in  all  its  grandeur  on  the  banks  of  the  beautiful  lake 
referred  to.  The  arrangement  of  this  gallery  of  amuse- 
ment was  ingeniously  romantic.  On  the  banks  of  the 
lake  was  built  a  large  amphitheatre,  of  stone,  provided 
with  private  boxes,  which,  however,  were  in  the  center  of 
the  semi-circle.  Entrance  was  through  doors  beside 
which  were  sculptured  dragons,  and  up  a  stairway  that 
lead  to  the  amphitheatre.  The  seats  were  of  stone,  but 
elegantly  cushioned  and  arranged  suitable  to  the  different 
ranks  of  those  who  attended  the  entertainments.  In 
front  of  tips  amphitheatre,  but  on  an  island  in  the  lake, 
was  a  stage,  also  made  of  stone,  most  elaborately  fitted 
up  with  all  needful  accessories  for  mimic  deeds,  the  fury 
of  battle  or  the  plaints  of  love.  These  stage  representa- 
tions were  witnessed  by  those  occupying  seats  in  the 
amphitheatre,  the  view  being  greatly  enhanced  by  roman- 
tic surroundings  of  forest  trees,  and  limpid  water  spark- 
ling under  scintillating  rays  of  a  silver  moon.  But  both 
amphitheatre  and  stage  are  now  in  ruins,  crumbled  with 
the  glory  of  Poland,  leaving  moss-covered  stones  as  a 
memorial  of  those  times  when  Polish  Kings  were  in  their 
pride,  and  when  ambition  crowned  their  subjects. 

From  Lazienski  Park  we  drove  four  miles  to  the 
palace  of  Wilanow,  which  was  built  by  Poland's  great- 
est King,  Sobiesky  (John  III).  This  fine  property  is 
the  only  estate  that  has  escaped  Russian  confiscation, 
and  is  still  owned  and  occupied  by  Sobiesky 's  descend- 
ants, who  are  wealthy  enough  to  preserve  its  former 
grandeur.  The  palace  is  very  large  and  contains  many 
galleries  filled  with  curiosities,  fine  paintings  and  statu- 
ary ;  its  floor,-  like  the  palace  at  Lazienski  Park,  are  of 
polished  woods  ingeniously  inlaid  so  as  to  produce  a 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  503 

most  harmonious  effect.  The  grounds  cover  nearly  two 
hundred  acres,  every  foot  of  which  is  cared  for  by  the 
most  artistic  landscape  gardeners  ;  there  is  also  a  large 
lake  connected  with  the  palace  which  is  kept  stocked 
with  game  fish,  and  the  banks  are  embowered  with  trees 
that  are  luxurious  in  growth  and  trimmed  in  a  manner 
which  produces  an  effect  almost  magical.  My  curiosity 
was  very  much  excited  by  three  sun-clocks  which,  by 
chance,  I  observed  on  the  palace,  one  being  on  the  east 
end,  another  on  the  south,  and  a  third  on  the  west  gable 
of  the  building.  These  clocks  consist  of  a  large  dial 
above  which  is  a  stone  image  representing  "time;" 
in  the  right  hand  of  this  image,  or  statue,  is  a  sword 
so  exactly  placed  that  the  sun's  rays  falling  upon  it  a 
shadow  is  thrown  upon  the  dial  that  indicates  the  time  of 
day,  even  to  a  minute.  There  were  three  clocks  so  that 
the  sun's  position  might  be  facing  one  of  the  clocks 
morning,  noon,  and  afternoon.  This  wonderful  time- 
piece— for  the  three  must  be  taken  as  one— has  marked 
the  hours  for  nearly  one  hundred  years,  having  fortunate- 
ly escaped  the  destructive  influences  that  have  desolated 
Poland,  and  sent  so  many  thousands  of  her  people  into 
exile. 

Returning  to  the  city  we  drove  through  the  Jewish 
quarters,  which  are  as  distinct  and  clearly  defined  as  is 
the  Chinese  settlement  in  San  Francisco.  Here  I  ob- 
served a  race  of  people  so  wedded  to  their  ancient  cus- 
toms and  religions,  as  to  resist  every  practice  and  senti- 
ment of  those  by  whom  they  are  surrounded.  Polish 
Jews  are  as  different  in  character  from  the  Jews  of 
America  as  any  two  races  having  a  common  ancestry  can 
be  ;  they  are  marvellously  exclusive  and  homogeneous ; 
over  their  places  of  business  they  have  signs  printed  with 
Hebrew  letters  ;  their  costume  never  varies,  every  man 


504  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

among  them  wearing  a  long-tailed  coat,  reaching  to  their 
knees,  and  buttoned  up  tight  in  front ;  around  the  neck 
they  wear  a  coarse,  woolen  comfort,  and  a  little  cap 
crowns  their  head.  I  have  no  language  at  my  command 
that  could  describe  their  filth  ;  they  literally  reek  with 
stenches.  I  was  told  that  though  bacon  is  abhorrent 
to  them,  on  account  of  religious  prejudices,  yet  the 
Jews  use  it  on  a  certain  occasion,  viz  :  when  a  Jew  pur- 
chases a  new  shirt,  his  next  act  is  to  procure  a  piece  of 
bacon,  with  which  he  thoroughly  greases  the  gar- 
ment all  over ;  he  then  puts  on  the  shirt  and  does  not 
take  it  off  for  one  or  two  years,  or  until  it  is  entirely 
worn  out.  The  bacon  is  used  to  prevent  vermin  from 
getting  on  their  filthy  bodies.  I  am  quite  prepared  to 
believe  this  statement,  since  only  such  a  disgustingly 
nasty  practice  can  account  for  the  odor  which  they  carry 
about  them. 

Foul,  homely  and  narrow-minded  as  the  Polish  Jews 
are,  they  succeed  in  accumulating  so  much  money  that 
gentlemen  of  caste  pay  them  tribute,  and  they  therefore 
force  their  importance  among  even  the  most  aristocratic 
class.  The  character  of  Shylock  will  certainly  fit  some  of 
them,  judging  by  the  experience  of  a  professor  of  lan- 
guages in  the  leading  university  of  Russia, who  borrowed 
seven  hundred  roubles  from  one  under  the  following  cir- 
cumstances, as  he  told  me  :  A  young  man,  with  whose  fami- 
ly the  professor  had  long  been  intimate,  lost  his  mother 
by  a  sudden  illness,  and  being  sorely  pressed  for  funds 
with  which  to  provide  burial  and  to  meet  other  expenses, 
he  applied  to  the  professor  for  a  loan,  which  he  promised 
to  return  within  one  month.  The  professor  did  not  have 
the  necessary  amount,  seven  hundred  roubles,  but  so  in- 
fluenced was  he  by  the  entreaties  of  his  young  friend, 
that  he  went  to  a  Jew  and  borrowed  the  money,  upon 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  505 

his  situation,  as  will  hereafter  be  explained.  He  gave 
his  note  for  the  amount,  and  then,  as  required,  gave  an 
agreement  binding  himself  to  pay  ten  per  cent,  per  month 
for  the  loan  ;  this  he  was  influenced  to'do  by  a  belief  that 
the  young  man  would  fulfil  his  obligation  at  the  time  ap- 
pointed for  payment.  But  when  the  month  expired  the 
promise  was  violated,  so  that  the  professor  was  left  with 
a  security  debt  on  his  hands  which  he  had  no  means  of 
liquidating.  At  the  end  of  every  month  he  had  to  pay 
the  Jew  seventy  roubles,  and  if  he  chanced  to  be  one 
day  behind  time  the  Jew  would  berate  him  soundly,  and 
threaten  to  throw  him  out  of  doors  by  taking  all  his 
household  property.  The  laws  in  Russia  are  such  that  if 
a  debtor  becomes  delinquent  his  creditor  can  peremptori- 
ly attach  every  article  of  furniture  or  clothing  belonging 
to  the  debtor  or  his  wife  ;  in  addition  to  this,  if  the  debt- 
or holds  any  position  of  trust,  upon  complaint  and  proof 
of  debt  made  by  the  creditor,  he  may  be  removed,  and  is 
thereafter  disqualified  from  assuming  any  place  of  trust 
again.  This  law  is  the  creation  of  an  aristocracy,  and 
forms  one  of  the  principal  complaints  of  Nihilists.  The 
Jew  was  enabled,  by  threatening  an  enforcement  of  this 
most  oppressive  law,  to  compel  the  professor  to  pay 
the  monthly  interest,  which  at  times  caused  him  much 
distress.  Salaries  paid  to  educators  in  Russia  are  so 
small  that  the  professor  was  never  able  to  discharge  any 
portion  of  the  original  debt,  and  when  he  related  the 
circumstances  to  me  he  had  paid  in  interest  thirty-five 
hundred  roubles,  while  the  original  debt  of  seven  hund- 
red roubles  was  still  held  against  him .  Fortunately,  he  had 
just  discovered  a  technicality  by  which  he  could  avoid  the 
further  payment  of  interest ;  this  loop-hole,  as  he  defined 
it,  consisted  in  the  fact,  of  which  a  lawyer  friend  had 
advised  him,  that  the  Jew  was  licensed  as  a  merchant, 


506  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

and  that  he  had  no  broker  privilege,  so  that  the  lending 
of  money  by  him  was  an  offense,  which  the  professor 
declared  he  should  make  the  Jew  answer  for.  It  was 
another  case  of  Shy  lock  brought  to  justice. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

AT  Warsaw  I  found  there  was  such  a  general  ac- 
quaintance with  the  riots  that  had  taken  place  against  the 
Jews  throughout  Russia,  that  I  had  no  difficulty  in  collect- 
ing all  essential  facts,  and  so  many,  too,  that  I  could  not 
undertake  to  give  them  the  extensive  description  which 
they  merit.  I  shall  therefore  have  to  present  a  history 
of  the  riots  in  a  concise  form,  and  within  the*  space 
remaining  that  was  alloted  for  this  work  on  Russia  and 
exile  life. 

The  most  outrageous  atrocities  perpetrated  against  the 
Jews  took  place  in  the  latter  part  of  1880  and  in  1881. 
Germany  started  the  anti-Semitic  agitation,  which  speedi- 
ly spread  to  Russia,  because  of  the  revolution  already  ex- 
citec]  by  factions  which  had  pronounced  against  law  and 
inflamed  the  masses  to  disorder.  Another  reason  is  found 
in  the  fanaticism  of  the  Russian  people  who  believe  it  is 
a  righteous  act  to  slay  a  Jew  ;  and  yet  another,  and  per- 
haps stronger  reason  still  is  the  natural  love  of  poor,  de- 
graded, ignorant  and  brutal  people  to  engage  in  plunder. 
The  Jews  were  rich,  and  the  peasantry  poor,  so  a  pretense 
was  had  to  despoil  them,  according  to  biblical  precedent. 

Within  a  period  of  eight  months,  four  of  1880  and 
four  of  1881,  a  tract  of  country  equal  in  area  to  the 
British  Isles  and  France  combined,  stretching  from  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  507 

Baltic  to  the  Black  Sea,  was  the  scene  of  horrors  that 
have  hitherto  only  been  perpetrated  in  medieval  days 
during  times  of  war.  Men  ruthlessly  murdered,  tender 
infants  dashed  to  death,  or  roasted  alive  in  their  own 
homes,  married  women  the  prey  to  a  brutal  lust  that 
often  caused  their  death,  and  young  girls  violated  in  the 
sight  of  their  relatives  by  soldiers  who  should  have  been 
the  guardians  of  their  honor.  In  the  face  of  these  hor- 
rors loss  of  property  is  of  little  moment,  yet  they  were 
accompanied  by  the  razing  of  whole  streets  inhabited  by 
Jews,  by  the  systematic  firing  of  the  Jewish  quarters  of 
towns  in  Western  Russia,  and  by  the  pillage  of  all  the 
property  on  which  thousands  of  Jewish  families  were  de- 
pendent for  existence. 

In  addition  to  all  this  many  Russian  towns  heartlessly 
seized  the  occasion  to  expel  from  their  limits  crowds  of 
Jews,  who  were  left  by  this  inhuman  and  deliberate  meas- 
ure homeless  amid  masses  infuriated  against  them.  And 
during  these  scenes  of  carnage  and  pillage  the  local  au- 
thorities stood  by  with  folded  arms,  doing  little  or  noth- 
ing to  prevent  their  occurrence  and  recurrence,  and 
allowed  the  ignorant  peasantry  to  remain  up  to  this  day 
under  the  impresssion  that  a  ukase  existed  ordering  the 
property  of  the  Jews  to  be  handed  over  to  their  fellow- 
Russians.  So  far  from  publicly  expressing  reprobation 
of  these  outrages,  the  Minister  issued  a  rescript  clearly 
betraying  that  the  Russian  authorities  fully  shared  the 
prejudice  of  the  mob,  and  contemplated  adding  to  the 
burdens  and  inequalities  which  have  been  the  direct  cause 
of  the  embittered  feeling  that  has  led  to  these  disorders. 

When  the  assassination  of  the  Czar  roused  all  Russia 
to  the  highest  pitch  of  excitement,  it  was  confidently  pre- 
dicted that  the  approaching  Easter  would  see  an  outbreak 
against  the  Jsws,  It  was  said  afterwards  that  the  pre- 


508  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

diction  was  aided  in  its  fulfilment  by  Panslavist  emissaries 
from  Moscow,  who  planned  all  the  subsequent  troubles. 
It  is  at  least  certain  that  rumors  of  a  rising  had  reached 
Elizabethgrad,  and  caused  the  heads  of  the  Jewish  com- 
munity, who  form  a  third  of  its  30,000  inhabitants,  to 
apply  for  special  protection  from  the  Governor.  No 
notice  was  taken  of  the  appeal,  and  on  Wednesday,  April 
27th,  the  dreaded  outbreak  took  place.  A  religious  dis- 
pute in  a  cabalet  led  to  a  scuffle  which  grew  into  a  general 
melee,  till  the  mob  obtained  possession  of  the  dram-shop 
and  rifled  it  of  its  contents.  Inflamed  by  the  drink  thus 
obtained,  the  rioters  proceeded  to  the  Jewish  quarter  and 
commenced  a  systematic  destruction  of  the  Jewish  shops 
and  warehouses.  At  first  some  attempt  was  made  by  the 
Jews  to  protect  their  property,  but  this  only  served  to 
increase  the  violence  of  the  mob,  which  proceeded  to 
attack  the  dwellings  of  the  Jews  and  to  wreck  the  syna- 
gogue. Amid  the  horrors  that  ensued  a  Jew  named 
Zololwenski  lost  his  life,  and  no  fewer  than  thirty  Jew- 
esses were  outraged.  At  one  place,  two  young  girls,  in 
dread  of  violation,  threw  themselves  from  the  windows. 
Meanwhile  the  military  had  been  called  out,  but  only  to 
act  at  first  as  spectators  and  afterwards  as  active  partici- 
pants. One  section  of  the  mob,  formed  of  rioters  and 
soldiers,  broke  into  the  dwelling  of  an  old  man  named 
Pelikoff,  and  on  attempting  to  save  his  daughter  from  a 
fate  worse  than  death,  they  threw  him  from  the  roof, 
while  twenty  soldiers  proceeded  to  work  their  will  on  his 
unfortunate  daughter.  When  seen  by  the  gentleman 
who  related  to  me  this  fact,  Pelikoff  was  in  a  state  of 
hopeless  madness,  and  his  daughter  completely  ruined  in 
mind  and  body.  The  whole  Jewish  quarter  was  at  the 
mercy  of  the  mob  till  April  29th.  During  the  two  days 
of  the  riots  5QQ  houses  and  100  shops  we  re  destroyed 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  509 

whole  streets  were  razed  to  the  ground.  It  may  be 
added  that  the  property  destroyed  and  stolen  was  reck- 
oned at  2,000,000  roubles  ($1,000,000). 

The  evidence  of  pent-up  anti-Jewish  passion  displayed 
by  these  scenes  encouraged  the  foes  of  the  Jews  to  wider 
and  more  systematic  attacks.  In. the  excesses  which  fol- 
lowed, the  masses  soon  got  to  recognize  professional 
ringleaders  from  Great  Russia.  These  distributed  pla- 
cards, found  afterwards  to  have  been  issued  from  a 
secret  printing-press  at  Kiew,  in  which  it  was  declared 
that  the  Czar  had  given  his  orthodox  subjects  the  prop- 
erty held  by  the  Jews.  In  most  cases  the  very  day  on 
which  a  riot  might  be  expected  was  announced  before- 
hand— Sundays  and  saints'  days  being  chosen,  as  the 
days  when  the  lower  orders  were  at  liberty.  After  a 
week's  pause,  a  whole  series  of  riots  broke  out,  commenc- 
ing on  May  7,  at  Smielo,  near  Czergassy,  where  thirteen 
men  were  killed  and  twenty  wounded,  and  1,600  were 
left  without  homes.  On  the  following  day,  Sunday,  May 
8,  a  most  serious  riot  broke  out  at  Kiew,  once  the  capital 
of  Russia,  and  still  an  important  town,  containing  20,000 
Jews  in  a  population  of  140,000.  Here  the  riot  had 
been  definitely  announced  for  the  Sunday,  and  the  Jews 
sent  a  deputation  to  the  Governor*  requesting  him  to 
call  out  his  soldiers  to  prevent  disturbance.  He  blunt- 
ly refused,  saying  that  he  would  not  trouble  his  soldiers 
for  the  sake  of  a  pack  of  Jews.  During  the  riot,  which 
broke  out  on  the  day  fixed,  the  police  and  the  soldiers 
again  acted  the  same  part  that  they  had  at  Elizabethgrad. 
The  first  procedure  of  the  mob  had  been  to  storm  the 
dram-shops,  and,  staving  in  the  brandy  casks,  to  wallow 
in  the  spirit.  During  the  period  of  license  that  followed 
four  Jews  were  killed,  twenty-five  women  and  girls  were 
violated,  of  whom  five  died  in  consequence,  as  was  proved 


510  11USSIAX  NIHILISM  AND 

at  the  subsequent  trials.  At  the  house  of  Mordecai 
Wienarski,  the  mob,  disappointed  in  the  search  for  plun- 
der, caught  up  his  little  child,  three  years  old,  and  brutally 
threw  it  out  of  the  window.  The  child  fell  dead  at  the  feet 
of  a  company  of  Cossacks  who  were  drawn  up  outside, 
yet  no  attempt  was  made  to  arrest  the  murderers.  At 
last,  when  several  houses  were  set  on  fire,  the  military 
received  orders  to  make  arrests,  which  they  proceeded 
to  execute  with  much  vigor,  making  1,500  prisoners, 
among  whom  150  were  Jews  arrested  for  protecting 
their  lives  and  properties.  No  less  than  2,000  Jews 
were  left  without  shelter  by  the  dismantling  or  the 
burning  of  their  houses,  and  for  the  relief  of  immediate 
necessities  a  Kiew  committee  soon  afterwards  had  to 
disburse  the  sum  of  $150,000. 

Next  day  similar  scenes  of  violence  occurred  at  Brow- 
ary,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Kief,  in  the  province  of 
Czernigow.  On  the  same  day  still  more  disgraceful 
deeds  were  enacted  at  Berezowka,  in  the  province  of 
Cherson.  Here  lust  seemed  more  a  principal  motive 
than  plunder.  While  the  Jews  of  the  village  were  at 
synagogue  a  mob  attacked  the  Jewesses  and  violated 
many  of  them,  causing  the  death  of  three  ;  others  who 
escaped  the  worse  evil  were  driven  into  the  river,  and 
nine  ultimately  died  from  the  effects  of  the  exposure. 
When  the  Jews  came  to  the  rescue,  two  of  them  were 
killed  and  a  young  lad  was  stoned  to  death. 

The  neighborhood  of  Kief  was  again  visited  on  the 
next  day,  May  10,  at  Konoptop  and  at  Wassilkov.  At 
both  places  the  attacks  had  been  planned  :  at  the  former 
wooden  crosses  were  placed  before  the  doors  of  Chris- 
tians that  their  houses  might  be  spared,  while  at  the 
latter  the  day  of  riot  had  been  announced,  and  the  report 
diligently  spread  about  that  the  Czar  had  given  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA  .  511 

erty  of  the  Jews  away.  At  Wassilkov  and  in  the  neigh- 
borhood eight  lives  were  lost,  seven  at  one  fell  swoop  at 
the  inn  kept  by  a  Jew  named  Rykelmann.  He  was  forced 
to  admit  the  mob  to  his.  wine-cellars,  and,  during  his  ab- 
sence in  search  of  assistance,  the  drunken  rioters  cut  the 
throats  of  his  wife  and  six  children. 

By  this  time  the  chief  towns  and  villages  of  Southern 
Russia  were  ablaze  with  violence  and  riot.  Throughout 
the  whole  of  the  provinces  of  Cherson,  Taurida,  Ekat- 
erinoslav,  Poltava,  Kief,'  Czernigov,  and  Podolia  the 
notion,  spread  fast  as  wildfire  that  the  Jews  and  their 
property  had  been  handed  over  to  the  tender  mercies  of 
the  populace,  a  notion  that  seems  almost  justified  in  the 
face  of  the  inertness  of  the  Governor-General  in  check- 
ing the  riots  at  Elizabethgrad  and  Kief.  At  Wasilgin 
the  Mayor  even  read  a  copy  of  the  supposed  ukase  to  the 
citizens,  and  a  riot  would  have  ensued  had  not  the  village 
priest  done  his  duty  and  declared  his  belief  that  no  such 
ukase  existed.  At  Alexandrovsk,  on  the  banks  of  the 
Dnieper,  the  operatives  carried  out  what  they  thought  to 
be  the  will  of  the  Czar,  on  May  13,  rendering  300  out  of 
the  400  Jewish  families  of  the  place  homeless,  and  de- 
stroying property  to  the  amount  of  400,000  roubles.  As 
usual,  the  riots  were  previously  announced,  and  the  appeal 
to  the  Governor  to  send  for  additional  troops  proved 
fruitless.  Even  after  the  riots  had  commenced,  a  tele- 
gram dispatched  to  the  capital  town  of  the  province, 
Ekaterinoslav,  was  delayed  for  four  hours  by  the  Gover- 
nor before  it  was  sent  off.  At  Ekaterinoslav  itself  a 
projected  riot  was  happily  prevented  by  the  issue  of  a 
proclamation  by  the  local  authorities  declaring  the  Jews 
to  be  true  subjects  of  the  Czar  and  entitled  to  protection 
of  their  property.  At  Polonnoze,  near  Kief,  a  disaster 
was  averted  by  the  forethought  of  the  Mayor,  who 


512 


RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 


changed  the  market  day  to  Saturday,  and  on  the  peas- 
ants complaining  he  read  them  a  lecture  on  the  utility  of 
the  Jews  as  middle-men,  and  induced  them  to  promise 
not  to  molest  their  Jewish  fellow-citizens. 


From  Alexundrovsky  the  instigators  paid  a  visit  to  the 
Jewish  agricultural  colonies  in  the  province  ot  Ekateri- 
noslav,  which  have  now  been  established  for  more  than 
forty  years.  The  chief  centres,  Gulaypol,  Orjechgw  and 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  51 3 

Marianpol,  were  visited  in  turn,  and  though  no  violence 
seems  to  have  been  done  to  the  persons  of  the  Jews,  their 
farms  were  almost  entirely  destroyed.  At  Orjechow  the 
instigators  who  led  the  mob  were  dressed  as  police 
officers,  and  produced  a  document  falsely  professing  to 
be  the  proclamation  of  the  Czar.  .  The  farming  imple- 
ments were  all  destroyed,  and  500  cattle  and  10,000 
sheep  driven  off.  At  Kamichewka  the  Jews  adroitly 
turned  the  supposed  ukase  of  the  Czar  into  a  safeguard. 
Hearing  that  the  rioters  were  advancing  to  attack,  they 
brought  the  keys  of  their  houses  to  their  Christian  neigh- 
bors, saying  that  if  the  ukase  were  true  it  would  be  bet- 
ter that  their  neighbors  should  have  their  property  than 
the  rioters,  and  if  the  ukase  proved  to  be  untrue,  of 
course  their  good  neighbors  would  return  the  keys.  The 
Christians  of  the  village  accordingly  repulsed  the  rioters, 
and  in  a  few  days  the  Jews  of  Kamichewka  were  again 
in  possession  of  their  property. 

Up  to  this  time  the  riots  had  chiefly  arisen  among 
the  urban  populations,  but  they  now  spread  into  the  rural 
districts  and  reached  every  little  village  where  even  a 
single  Jew  resided.  A  Jew  was  murdered  at  Rasdory, 
a  few  miles  southeast  of  Orjechow,  and  at  Znamenka, 
near  Nikopol,  on  the  Dnieper,  a  Jewish  innkeeper  named 
Bessor  was  murdered  and  his  wife  dishonored,  after 
which  both  were  cast  into  the  river.  At  Balka,  also  on 
the  bank  of  the  Dnieper,  there  was  only  one  Jew,  Allo- 
wicz  by  name.  A  band  of  ruffians  went  to  his  house  on 
May  17,  and,  finding  him  absent,  they  violated  his  wife, 
and,  to  conceal  the  crime,  set  fire  to  the  house  while  the 
poor  woman  lay  helpless  in  it.  All 'this  was  witnessed 
by  her  little  daughter,  crouched  in  a  ditch  hard  by. 
On  the  preceding  day  another  tragedy  had  occurred  at 
Kitzkis,  where  the  house  of  one  Preskoff  was  set  on 


514  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

and  he,  with  his  two  little  children,  left  to  roast  in  it, 
while  the  wife  and  mother  looked  on,  vainly  appealing 
for  mercy  to  the  ruffianly  perpetrators  of  the  crime.  At 
Gregorievk  a  Jewish  innkeeper  named  Ruff  maim  was 
cooped  in  one  of  his  own  barrels  and  cast  into  the  Dnie- 
per. Again,  at  Kanzeropol  a  man  named  Enman  was 
murdered  brutally  and  his  wife  violated  and  afterward 
killed.  Such  were  the  deeds  that  were  done  on  the  banks 
of  the  Dnieper  during  the  month  of  May. 

Meantime  the  seaport  of  Odessa  had  likewise  been  the 
scene  of  an  an  ti- Jewish  riot.  Originally  announced  for 
May  13,  it  was  postponed  till  Sunday,  May  15,  with- 
out, however,  any  precautions  being  taken  by  the  Govern- 
or, who  had,  as  usual,  been  duly  warned  of  the  impend- 
ing outbreak.  Though  only  lasting  for  six  hours,  the 
riot  resulted  in  the  death  of  a  Jew  named  Handelmann, 
and  eleven  cases  of  violation  are  reported,  one  resulting 
in  death.  Here  the  Jews  seemed  to  have  been  most 
energetic  in  their  resistance.  Of  the  800  arrests  made, 
150  were  Jews,  twenty-six  of  whom  were  afterward 
charged  with  carrying  revolvers  without  a  permit.  The 
police  estimated  the  damage  done  at  1,137,831  roubles, 
while  those  more  immediately  concerned  raised  the  sum 
to  3,000,000.  Similar  scenes  took  place  on  the  same 
day  at  Wolvezysk,  on  the  borders,  where  a  riot  had  been 
announced  for  the  Sunday.  A  week  afterward  the  lower 
orders  at  Berdyczew  rose  against  the  Jews,  and  on  May 
24  a  riotous  disturbance  occurred  at  Zmerinka,  in  Po- 
dolia. 

Thus,  within  a  month  of  the  first  outbreak,  almost 
every  town  in  Southern  Russia  had  seen  such  horrors  as 
here  described.  Apart  from  t»?e  influence  of  ringleaders, 
the  rioters  had  no  cause  to  incite  them  to  rapine,  except 
the  force  of  contagion  and  the  impression  that  the  Czar 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  515 

had  really  transferred  all  Jewish  property  to  his  ortho- 
dox subjects.  If  once  this  impression  had  been  officially 
removed,  the  epidemic  would  have  been  checked.  In 
many  cases  it  was  distinctly  shown  that  the  peasants 
liked  the  Jews,  and  only  pillaged  because  they  thought 
it  had  been  ordered.  At  Bougaifka,  for  example,  a  few 
days  after  the  peasants  had  destroyed  the  property  of 
the  Jews,  they  became  contrite,  and  gave  their  Jewish 
neighbors  800  roubles  as  some  compensation  for  the 
damage  they  themselves  had  caused.  In  the  face  of  such 
a  fact,  it  is  tolerably  certain  that  if  the  supposed  procla- 
mation had  been  energetically  and  officially  denied  the 
riots  might  never  have  reached  the  extent  that  they  even- 
tually did.  The  contagion  spread  as  far  as  Saratov  in 
early  June,  and  thence  to  Astrakhan  ;  it  even  reached  a 
town  near  Tomsk,  in  Siberia,  and  caused  an  anti-Jewish 
riot  there.  The  only  bright  spot  in  all  this  gloom  was 
the  condition  of  Poland,  where  Jews  and  Poles  had 
before  lived  in  amity.  This  continued  till  General  Igna- 
tieff  directed  the  Governor  of  Poland  to  appoint  commis- 
sions of  experts  to  consider  how  the  Jews  should  be  dealt 
with,  to  which  fact  persons  on  the  spot  attribute  the  rise 
of  anti-Jewish  feeling  that  culminated  in  the  Warsaw 
riots.  But  outside  Poland  these  outbursts  of  popular 
prejudice  placed  a  population  of  nearly  two  millions  in 
perpetual  dread  of  their  lives  and  property.  At  times 
they  dared  not  remove  their  clothes  night  .or  day,  fearing 
that  they  might  have  to  flee  at  any  moment. 

After  the  Saratov  affair,  on  June  8,  in  which  30  Jews 
were  wounded,  there  was  a  comparative  lull  in  the  more 
violent  forms  of  outrage.  But  early  in  July  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Kief  and  the  banks  of  the  Dnieper  were 
once  more  visited  by  scenes  which  recall  the  horrors  of 
the  Middle  Ages.  On  Sunday,  the  12th,  open  rioting 


516  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

took  place  at  Penjaslaw,  which  was  characterized  by  the 
fact  that  the  mob  were  led  to  the  attack  by  the  sons  of 
the  merchants  of  the  district.  Commercial  rivalry  add- 
ing its  sting  to  religious  and  social  differences,  the  strug- 
gle was  here  of  a  more  violent  nature  than  usual,  and, 
while  30  of  the  molb  were  wounded,  no  less  than  200  of 
the  Jews  received  serious  injuries  at  the  hands  of  their 
neighbors,  and  three  died  in  consequence;  176  houses 
were  destroyed,  some  by  fire.  At  Borispol,  on  July  21, 
scenes  occurred  during  the  riots  worthy  of  the  worst  days 
of  the  Commune.  Women,  for  almost  the  first  time,  made 
their  appearance  on  the  scene  as  assailants,  and  added  to 
its  horrors.  During  the  rioting  they  encouraged  their 
friends  on  to  the  fight  and  were  seen  to  assist  them  to 
violate  the  Jewesses  of  the  village  by  holding  down  the 
unfortunate  creatures.  A  curious  petition  afterward 
sent  from  Penjaslaw,  demanding,  among  other  things, 
that  Jewesses  should  not  be  allowed  to  wear  silks  and 
satins,  may  throw  some  light  on  the  motives  of  these 
viragoes. 

The  reader  will  be  by  this  time  satiated  with  the  horri- 
ble crimes  which  have  been  laid  before  him.  The  im- 
agination may  now  be  able  to  take  in  the  full  meaning 
of  the  bare  statement,  so  frequently  telegraphed  to  the 
world,  that  anti-Jewish  riots  had  taken  place  in  such  and 
such  a  district  of  Southern  Russia.  Suffice  it  then  to  add 
that  the  month  of  August  saw  such  riots  at  Njezin  on  the 
2d,  at  Lubny  on  the  8th,  at  Borzny  on  the  18th,  and  at 
Itchny  on  the  28th.  If  September  was  comparatively 
free  from  disorders,  the  cessation  must  be  attributed 
rather  to  the  needs  of  the  harvest  than  to  the  quieting  of 
the  popular  mind,  for,  early  in  October,  the  mob  attacked 
the  Jews  of  Balwierzyski,  in  the  government  of  Suwalki. 
October  3  was  the  Day  of  Atonement,  the  most  sacred 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  517 

day  of  the  Hebrew  calendar,  and  the  mob  took  the  occa- 
sion to  destroy  the  synagogue  and  wreck  the  Jewish 
quarter,  where  one  Jew  was  killed  and  20  wounded. 
Even  as  late  as  November,  the  myth  of  the  spoliation 
ukase  imposed  upon  the  peasantry.  On  the  15th  of  that 
month,  a  band  of  100  peasants  at  Czarwona,  near  Zito- 
mir,  pillaged  the  property  of  th-e  Jews  under  that  pre- 
text. Lastly,  to  show  the  excitable  state  of  the  popular 
mind,  the  Sarah  Bernhardt  riots  at  Kief  on  November 
1$  and  at  Odessa  on  November  27  proved  that  a  mere 
suspicion  that  the  actress  was  a  Jewess  was  sufficient  to 
arouse  once  more  the  fury  of  the  mob,  and  cause  them 
again  to  attack  the  Jewish  quarter  of  those  towns. 

Finally,  this  catalogue  of  horrors  must  be  concluded 
by  a  reference  to  the  riots  at  Warsaw  on  Christmas  and 
the  following  days.  The  detailed  events  of  those  days, 
when  300  houses  and  600  shops  were  pillaged  and  devas- 
tated and  thousands  of  victims  rendered  homeless  and  re- 
duced to  beggary,  are  doubtless  fresh  in  every  one's  mem- 
ory, but  certain  facts  must  be  again  referred  to,  owing  to 
their  typical  character.  In  the  first  place,  the  riot  was 
clearly  planned,  the  alarm  of  fire  being  simultaneously 
raised  in  at  least  two  churches,  and  the  mob  being  direct- 
ed by  men  who  spoke  Polish  with  a  Russian  accent.  The 
culpable  neglect  of  the  military  authorities  of  Warsaw 
in  refusing  to  make  use  of  the  20,000  men  forming  its 
garrison,  finds  its  counterpart  in  the  similar  behavior  of 
the  Governors  of  Kief,  Elizabethgrad,  and  Odessa  earlier 
in  the  year.  The  behavior  of  the  police,  who  are  des- 
cribed as  only  interfering  to  prevent  the  Jews  from  pro- 
tecting themselves,  exactly  tallies  with  their  behavior 
elsewhere.  And,  finally,  the  attempts  that  were  made  by 
telegraph  officials  and  others  to  prevent  the  true  state  of 
the  case  from  reaching  the  rest  of  Europe  may  serve  to 
33 


518  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

account  for  the  extraordinary  fact  that  the  enormities  of 
the  nine  months  only  found  the  faintest  echo  in  the  press 
of  Europe  or  America.  Thus,  while  outrages  on  women 
were  openly  committed,  the  knowledge  of  this  fact  was 
guarded  so  that  it  might  not  go  outside  the  Russian 
boundary. 

The  outrages  recounted  in  the  preceding  pages,  though, 
no  doubt,  the  most  irnoprtant,  are  far  from  including  all 
the  similar  events  that  occurred  during  the  year  1881. 
They  have  been  selected  from  a  list  of  over  160  towns 
and  villages  in  which  cases  of  riot,  rapine,  murder,  and 
spoliation  have  been  known  to  occur  during  the  last  nine 
months  of  1881.  Out  of  these  information  was  collect- 
ed from  about  45  towns  and  villages  in  Southern  Russia. 
In  these  alone  are  reported  23  murders  of  men,  women 
and  children,  17  deaths  caused  by  violation,  and  no  few- 
er than  225  cases  of  outrages  of  Jewesses. 

Such  have  been  the  horrors  that  throughout  the  past 
year  have  assailed  the  3,000,000  Israelites  who  inhabit 
Russia.  Nor  is  there  any  indication  that  the  atrocities 
will  cease  in  succeeding  years,  unless  the  Russian  Gov- 
ernment will  intervene  in  the  sacred  cause  of  civilization 
and  humanity. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

BESIDES  appealing  to  the  blind  passions  of  the  mob, 
the  Jew-haters  of  Russia  have  resorted  to  more  system- 
atic efforts  to  harass  the  hap  less  Israelites.  The  Russian 
Moujik  has  a  method  almost  peculiar  to  himself  of  ex- 
pressing his  rage  and  hatred.  Whenever  the  fever  point 
of  excitement  is  reached  arson  is  usually  the  direction  in 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


519 


which  it  overflows.  So  well  is  this  recognized  in  Russia 
that  the  peasants  have  a  technical  name  for  the  deliberate 
firing  of  towns — the  "  red  cock"  is  said  to  crow.  Dur- 
ing the  year  1881  this  method  of  revenge  was  resorted  to 


JEWS  BEING  DRIVEN  FROM  THEIR  HOMES  IN  MINSK. 

on  a  large  scale  against  the  Jews  of  Russia,  especially  in 
the  West.  By  the  end  of  June  the  "red  cock"  had 
crowed  over  15  towns  in  Western  Russia,  including  Mo- 
hilew,  containing  25,000  inhabitants,  Witebsk,  with  23,- 


520  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND  » 

000,  and  Slonim,  with  20,000,  as  well  as  smaller  towns 
like  Wolcowysk,  Scherwondt,  Augustowo,  Nowo-Gucdek, 
Ponovicz,  and  Lipsk.  Many  thousands  of  Jews  were 
rendered  homeless  by  this  means,  and  on  July  3d  6,000 
Jews  lost  their  homes  by  fire  at  Minsk,  4,800  being  de-  , 
prived  of  every  means  of  subsistence  at  the  same  time. 
The  town  of  Pinsk,  in  the  same  province,  suffered  a  like 
fate.  And  shortly  afterward  a  conflagration  took  place 
at  Koretz,  in  Wolhynia,  in  which  30  lives  were  lost  and 
5,000  souls  left  without  a  home.  Every  week  added  to 
the  number  of  fires  in  towns  inhabited  by  Jews  till,  by 
the  end  of  September, "  the  list  extended  to  41  towns. 
This  probably  involved  the  loss  of  homes  to  20,000 
Jews. 

To  the  mass  of  homeless  and  penniless  creatures  in 
Southern  Russia  must  be  added  the  many  victims  of  pil- 
lage. The  violence  of  the  mobs  often  wrecked  whole 
streets  of  houses  as  completely  as  any  fire,  and  it  is 
known  that  2,000  were  thus  rendered  homeless  at  Kief, 
1,600  at  Smielo,  1,000  at  Konotop,  600  at  Ouehow,  and 
300  at  Aluchpff.  The  value  of  property  destrojed  in 
the  south  has  been  reckoned  to  reach  $80,000,000. 

It  is  possible  that  an  aggregate  of  100,000  Jewish 
families  has  thus  been  reduced  to  poverty.  The  ranks 
of  the  ruined  were  increased  by  those  who  dared  not  ap- 
ply for  their  just  debts,  while  in  many  cases  the  peasan- 
try deliberately  "boycotted"  the  Jews.  It  must  be 
further  remembered  that  in  several  places  the  Jews  an- 
ticipated riots  by  evacuating  their  homes  ;  thus,  near 
Perejaslay,  after  the  riot  at  that  place,  no  fewer  than  17 
villages  in  the  neighborhood  were  deserted  by  the  Jews, 
and  the  same,  doubtless,  took  place  in  other  localities. 
Men  fled  from  the  villages  in  which  they  had  resided  all 
their  lives.  Even  after  the  events  of  Keiw  the  Jews  of  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  521 

neighborhood,  fearing  the  spread  of  disorder,  crowded, 
at  the  rate  of  100  families  a  day,  into  the  town  which 
had  so  lately  shown  itself  hostile.  .Others  fled  toward 
the  borders,  and  during  the  summer  months  a  camp  of 
refugees  in  the  open  air  at  Podwoloczyska  contained  no 
less  than  1,500  souls,  including  children  of  the  tenderest 
age.  A  few  who  still  possessed  some  means  attempted 
to  flee  across  the  frontier,  but  many  were  stopped.  Of 
5,000  who  managed  to  reach  Brody,  on  the  Austrian 
border,  in  a  perfectly  helpless  state,  2,000  remained 
there  huddled  in  cellars  for  nearly  one  month. 

Meanwhile,  the  municipalities,  with  the  connivance  of 
the  local  governments,  took  every  means  in  their  power 
to  add  to  the  misery  of  the  situation.  With  rough  logic 
they  argued  that,  as  these  riots  were  directed  against  the 
Jews,  if  there  had  been  no  Jews,  there  would  have  been 
no  riots.  They  accordingly  petitioned  the  governors  of 
their  provinces  to  issue  orders  for  the  expulsion  of  the 
Jews  from  towns  in  which  they  had  no  legal  right  of 
domicile.  The  Jews  of  Russia  are  only  allowed  to  reside 
in  28  of  its  provinces,  often  only  in  certain  towns,  and 
the  number  of  permits  to  reside  is,  at  least  theoretically, 
limited.  For  the  last  20  years,  however,  these  barbarous 
laws  have  been  somewhat  allowed  to  fall  into  desuetude, 
and  many  Jews  have  ventured  beyond  the  narrow  limits 
assigned  to  them.  Leaving  aside  the  general  question,  it 
was  clearly  a  most  heartless  act  to  add  to  the  miseries  of 
the  Jewish  population  at  the  moment  when  the  mob  were 
eagerly  scanning  the  disposition  of  the  authorities  to  dis- 
cover to  what  lengths  they  might  proceed  with  impunity. 
Whatever  be  the  legality  of  the  measure,  the  occasion  for 
introducing  its  rigorous  enforcement  was  inhumanly  in- 
opportune, and  lays  the  corporations  who  enforced  it 
open  to  a  charge  of  complicity  with  the  more  lawless  per- 


522  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

secutors  of  the  Jews.  At  Kief,  for  example,  even  before 
the  excitement  had  entirely  subsided,  the  governor  or- 
dered a  stringent  scrutiny  of  the  right  of  domicile  among 
the  Jews  of  that  town.  By  July  29  the  strict  enforce- 
ment of  these  harsh  regulations  had  resulted  in  the  ex- 
pulsion of  4,000  Jews,  and  quite  recently  new  rules  have 
been  issued  in  Kief,  as  well  as  Odessa,  still  further  limit- 
ing the  number  of  Jews  capable  of  residing  in  either  city. 
At  Liebenthal,  near  Odessa,  the  municipality,  of  course 
with  the  permission  of  the  Governor  of  Odessa,  expelled 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  Jewish  families,  and  imposed  a 
fine  of  fifty  roubles  upon  any  one  harboring  a  Jew  for  a 
single  night.  From  Podolsk  100  families  were  expelled, 
while  whole  regions  of  Podolia  have  been  relentlessly 
cleared  of  the  Jews ;  the  towns  of  Kromonitz,  Dubno, 
Constantinow,  Vladimir,  and  Wolinsk,  being  the  principal 
offenders.  More  to  the  east  the  town  of  Charkooff  ex- 
pelled Jews  at  the  beginning  of  August. 

At  Orel,  in  the  Government  of  that  name,  the  expul- 
sion has  recently  taken  place  on  a  large  scale,  and  under 
peculiarly  cruel  circumstances.  In  that  town  900 
families  of  Jews,  numbering  5,000  souls,  have  hitherto 
dwelt  in  peace  and  good  will  with  their  neighbors.  Soon 
after  the  outbreak  of  the  disturbances,  the  Governor  of 
Orel  gave  orders  that  all  Jews  must  quit  its  bounds  by 
September  1.  When  that  day  arrived  a  further  grace 
was  allowed  them  till  October  25,  and  on  the  latter  day 
the  Jewish  congregation  met  for  the  last  time  in  the  syn- 
agogue, and,  after  tearful  prayers,  removed  the  sacred 
scrolls  and  left  in  mournful  procession  the  town  that  had 
been  their  home.  Nearly  400  of  them,  however,  did  not 
even  possess  the  means  of  departure,  and  ventured  to  re- 
main, only  to  be  thrust  out  by  the  police  into  the  snow 
on  the  following  night.  In  other  places,  where  no  legal 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA. 


523 


JEWISH  SYNAGOGUE  AT  OREL. 


524  HUSSIAN  KIHILISM  AND 

objection  could  be  taken  to  the  domicile' of  the  Jews,  pe- 
titions were  sent  by  the  authorities  requesting  the 
imposition  of  all  sorts  of  restrictions.  They  desired  to 
restrict  Jewish  commerce  in  grain,  and  to  limit  the  send- 
ing of  Jewish  children  to  the  higher  gymnasia  and 
universities,  thus  stultifying  their  own  complaints  as  to 
the  want  of  culture  among  the  Jews.  Many  local  com- 
missions would  prevent  the  Jews  from  holding 
"harandas,"  erroneously  described  as  "drain-shops," 
but  really  general  stores,  at  which  wine  and  spirits  are 
sold.  I  have  already  referred  to  the  Perejaslav  petition, 
that  Jewesses  be  not  allowed  to  wear  silks  and  satins. 
These  expulsions  and  petitions  have  formed  the  sole  an- 
swer which  the  town  councils  of  Russia  have  given  to  the 
Jewish  question. 

Meanwhile,  what  has  been  done  in  this  emergency?  It 
is  by  no  means  difficult  to  suggest  what  could  and  should 
have  been  done  from  the  first  appearance  of  an ti -Jewish 
feeling  in  the  South.  If  orders  had  been  given  and  pub- 
lished that  every  Governor-General  should  supply  Jewish 
communities  with  a  guard  on  application  from  the  Rabbi 
and  the  elders  of  the  community ;  if  an  edict  had  been 
passed  rendering  all  damage  to  Jewish  property  by  riots 
chargeable  to  the  communal  rates  of  the  town  or  village  ; 
if,  above  all,  a  proclamation  had  been  issued  declaring 
that  all  Jewish  subjects  were  as  much  entitled  to  protec- 
tion of  life  and  property  as  their  orthodox  fellow-citizens, 
and  denying  the  existence  of  any  ukase  purporting  to 
"convey"  their  property,  it  is  safe  to  assert  that  the 
disorders  would  not  have  spread  far,  and  certainly  would 
not  have  lasted  long.  Instead  of  this,  at  Kief  instruc- 
tions were  issued  that  the  military  should  not  be  called 
out  till  the  last  extremity. 

As  early  as  May  23  the  Czar,  having  been  appealed  to 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  525 

"by  a  deputation  of  the  Jews  of  St.  Petersburg,  headed 
by  Baron  Gunzburg,  expressed  his  intention  of  dealing 
with  the  evil.  Accordingly,  Count  Kutaissow  was  de- 
spatched to  the  South  to  make  inquiries.  He  returned,  it 
would  seem,  with  the  answer  that  inquiries  were  still 
further  necessary.  General  Ignatieff  now  took  the  op- 
portunity to  introduce  a  system  by  which  the  Zemstras, 
or  Provincial  Assemblies,  might  be  superseded  by  local 
committees  of  experts  on  this  special  subject,  and  on 
September  3  the  following  rescript  was  issued  : 

"  For  some  time  the  Government  has  given  its  atten- 
tion to  the  Jews,  and  to  their  relations  to  the  rest  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  Empire,  with  the  view  of  ascertaining 
the  sad  condition  of  the  Christian  inhabitants,  brought 
about  by  the  conduct  of  the  Jews  in  business  matters. 

"For  the  last  twenty  years  the  Government  has  en- 
deavored, in  various  ways,  to  bring  the  Jews  near  to  its 
other  inhabitants,  and  has  given  them  almost  equal  rights 
with  the  indigenous  population.  The  movements,  how- 
ever, against  the  Jews,  which  began  last  spring  in  the 
south  of  Kussia,  and  extended  to  Central  Russia,  prove 
incontestably  that  all  its  endeavors  have  been  of  no  avail, 
and  that  ill-feeling  prevails  now  as  much  as  ever  between 
the  Jewish  and  the  Christian  inhabitants  of  those  parts. 
Now,  the  proceedings  at  the  trial  of  those  charged  with 
rioting  and  other  evidence  bear  witness  to  the  fact  that 
the  main  cause  of  those  movements  and  riots — to  which 
the  Russians,  as  a  nation,  are  strangers — was  but  a  com- 
mercial one,  and  is  as  follows  : — 

"  '  During  the  last  twenty  years  the  Jews  have  gradu- 
ally possessed  themselves  of  not  only  every  trade  and 
business  in  all  its  branches,  but  also  of  a  great  part  of 
the  land  by  buying  or  farming  it.  With  few  exceptions 
they  have,  as  a  body,  devoted  their  attention  not  to 


526  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AXD 

enriching  or  benefiting  the  countiy,  but  to  defrauding, 
by  their  wiles,  its  inhabitants,  and  particularly  its  poor 
inhabitants.  This  conduct  of  theirs  has  called  forth  pro- 
tests on  the  part  of  the  people,  as  manifested  in  acts  of 
violence  and  robbery.  The  Government,  while  on  the 
one  hand  doing  its  best  to  put  down  the  disturbances 
and  to  deliver  the  Jews  from  oppression  and  slaughter, 
have  also,  on  the  other  hand,  thought  it  a  matter  of 
urgency  and  justice  to  adopt  stringent  measures  in  order 
to  put  an  end  to  the  oppression  practiced  by  the  Jews  on 
the  inhabitants  and  to  free  the  country  from  their  mal- 
practices, which  were,  as  it  is  known,  the  cause  of  the 
agitation.' 

"  With  this  view  it  has  appointed  commissions  (in  all 
the  towns  inhabited  by  Jews),  whose  duty  it  is  to  inquire 
into  the  following  matters  : — 

"  1.  What  are  the  trades  of  the  Jews  which  are  in- 
jurious to  the  inhabitants  of  the  place? 

"2.  What  makes  it  impracticable  to  put  into  force 
the  former  laws  limiting  the  rights  of  the  Jews  in  the 
matter  of  buying  and  farming  land,  the  trade  in  intoxi- 
cants, and  usury? 

"  3.  How  can  those  laws  be  altered  so  that  they  shall 
no  longer  be  enabled  to  evade  them,  or  what  new  laws 
are  required  to  stop  their  pernicious  conduct  in  business? 

"  4.  Give  (besides  the  answers  to  the  foregoing  sugges- 
tions) the  following  additional  information  :  (a)  On  the 
usury  practiced  by  the  Jews  in  their  dealings  with  Chris- 
tians, in  cities,  towns  and  villages;  (b)  the  number  of 
public  houses  kept  by  Jews  in  their  own  name,  or  in  that 
of  a  Christian  ;  (c)  the  number  of  persons  in  service  with 
Jews  or  under  their  control  ;  (r7)  the  extent  (acreage) 
of  the  land  in  their  possession,  by  buying  or  farming; 
(e)  the  number  of  Jewish  agriculturists. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  527 

"In  addition  to  the  above-named  information  to  be 
supplied,  every  commission  is  empowered  to  report  on 
such  conduct  and  action  of  the  Jews  as  may  have  a  local 
interest  and  importance,  and  to  submit  the  same  to  the 
Ministry." 

That,  after  the  events  of  May,  June  and  July,  any  per- 
son in  authority  in  Russia  should  in  August  have  been 
thinking  of  aught  else  but  the  protection  of  Jewish  lives 
and  the  honor  of  Jewish  women,  is  the  first  surprise  that 
meets  us  in  this  remarkable  document.  But  that  no  word 
of  reprimand  should  be  addressed  to  those  who  had  in- 
dulged in  such  misdeeds  is  a  severer  surprise  still,  the 
only  allusion  to  the  whole  catalogue  of  horrors  being 
couched  in  the  half-apologetic  allusion  to  "protests" 
that  have  taken  so  deplorable  a  form.  It  is  certain  that 
the  direct  cause  of  the  objection  of  the  Russians  to  their 
Jewish  fellow-citizens  is  the  natural  result  of  the  Russian 
laws,  which  restrict  their  rights  and  mark  them  off  from 
the  rest  of  the  nation.  It  is  the  lesson  taught  by  all 
experience  that  the  only  solution  of  the  Jewish  question 
is  the  granting  of  full  equality.  It  is  absolutely  certain 
that  the  whole  body  of  the  Jews,  forming  one-eighth  of 
the  population  amid  which  they  dwell,  cannot  be  accused 
of  "exploitation,"  or  "usury,"  as  imputed  by  the  re- 
script, the  fact  being  that  the  chief  industries  of  Russia 
are  in  the  hands  of  the  thrifty  and  hard-working  Jews. 
Again,  objection  to  innkeeping  by  Jews  is  clearly  a  gross 
injustice,  seeing  that  statistics  show  drunkenness  to  be 
more  prevalent  in  provinces  where  Jews  do  not  reside. 
But,  waiving  all  this,  surely  the  poor  women  who  had 
been  violated,  the  little  children  who  had  been  murdered, 
the  farmers  who  had  been  robbed  of  their  cattle  and 
implements,  could  not  be  accused  of  these  charges, 
and  it  was  accordingly  the  refinement  of  cruelty  to 


528  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

issue  this  document,  teeming  with  animus  against  the 
Jews,  at  a  time  when  the  passions  of  the  mob  had  been 
raised  against  all  Jews,  without  distinction  of  person,  oc- 
cupation, age  or  sex.  The  Jewish  question  at  the  present 
moment  is  not  how  the  Jews  should  be  prevented  from 
competing  with  the  Russians  in  certain  trades,  but  whether 
the  lives  of  three  millions  and  a  half  of  Jews  shall  be  left 
at  the  mercy  of  the  passions  of  the  mob.  A  document 
like  this,  far  from  helping  to  solve  the  question,  rather 
adds  to  its  complexity  by  showing  clearly  to  the  populace 
that  the  authorities  share  their  prejudices.  The  appoint- 
ments to  commissions  showed  the  same  bias  ;  at  the  head 
of  the  Kief  Commission  was  placed  General  Drudkoff , 
the  Governor  of  Kief,  who  initated  the  proceedings  of 
the  first  meeting  by  declaring,  "Either  I  or  the  Jews 
must  go."  On  another  Commission  was  placed  M.  Che- 
garym,  whose  only  claim  to  be  considered  an  expert  on 
the  Jewish  question  was  that  he  had  written  a  pamphlet, 
entitled  "  The  Annihilation  of  the  Jews." 

At  Odessa  the  first  Commission  was  dismissed  because 
it  had  recommended  the  only  true  solution  of  the  questions 
put  by  the  Minister  of  the  Interior,  the  granting  to  the 
Jews  fully  equality  of  rights  and  equal  liberty  of  settle- 
ment with  their  fellow-citizens  of  other  creeds.  A  second 
Commission  was  thereupon  appointed,  with  views  more 
in  consonance  with  the  spirit  of  the  rescript.  When  the 
Governor  of  Warsaw,  Count  Albedinski,  was  ordered  to 
publish  the  circular  he  at  first  refused,  saying  that  Jews 
and  Poles  had  always  lived  on  such  friendly  terms  that 
no  Commission  was  necessary.  He  was,  however,  forced 
to  publish  the  rescript,  and  competent  observers  attribute 
the  rise  of  anti-Semitic  feeling  in  Warsaw  mainly  to  this 
publication. 

These  acts  and  the  tone  of  the  circular  itself  made  clear 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  529 

to  the  Commissions  what  was  expected  of  them.  They 
have  accordingly  made  recommendations  which  will,  if 
adopted,  bring  back  all  the  horrors  of  the  Middles  Ages 
on  the  unfortunate  Jews  of  Eussia.  Thus,  among  other 
proposals,  they  have  advised  that  Jews  should  not  be 
allowed  to  build  synagogues  or  establish  schools  and  or- 
phan asylums  ;  that  they  should  not  be  permitted  to  re- 
side in  villages,  nor  own  houses  or  landed  property  ;  that 
Jews  should  not  lease  factories  or  sell  spirituous  liquors 
or  be  apothecaries;  Besides  this,  it  is  rumored  that  it  is 
intended  to  restrict  still  further  the  right  of  domicile,  and 
to  allow  no  Jew  to  reside  within  eighty  miles  of  the  bord- 
ers. In  short,  it  seems  to  be  the  intention  to  make  Eussia 
an  impossible  home  for  the  Jews,  or  perhaps  even  to  doom 
them  to  complete  extinction.  The  Eusso-Jewish  question 
may,  therefore,  be  summed  up  in  these  words  :  Are  three 
and  a  half  millions  of  human  beings  to  perish  because 
they  are  Jews  ? 


CHAPTEE  XXXIV. 

THE  Jews  of  Eussia  are  chiefly  confined  to  the  Southern 
portion  of  the  country  and  to  Poland,  which  latter  pro- 
vince contains  nearly  one-half  the  entire  Semitic  popula- 
tion. It  is  not  in  all  sections  that  bitter  prejudices  pre- 
vail against  them  ;  in  fact  they  generally  live  harmoni- 
ously with  the  Poles.  In  the  Caucasus,  though  not  re- 
garded with  any  special  affiliation,  they  are  certainly  not 
hated  or  envied  with  that  intense  feeling  which  has  de- 
veloped against  them  in  other  provinces  of  the  Empire. 
The  influence  of  Mussulmans  for  so  many  years  in  the 
Caucasian  district,  and  the  efficient  measures  taken  by 


530  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

them  to  enforce  the  "  Truce  of  God  "  among  the  votaries 
of  different  religions,  have  had  the  effect  of  establishing 
and  maintaining  at  least  a  partially  considerate  forbear- 
ance toward  the  Jews  whose  thrift  here,  as  elsewhere,  has 
given  them  control  of  the  business  of  the  district.  Wherev- 
er Jews  come  in  contact  with  Turks,  as  in  the  Cauca- 
sus, they  usually  prosper  without  exciting  any  prejudice  ; 
this  may  be  accounted  for,  however,  by  the  implacable 
hostility  which  exists  between  Christians  and  Mussul- 
mans, in  which  Jew  and  Turk  may  be  regarded  as  com- 
mon enemies  of  the  cross. 

But  the  most  singular  features  connected  with  Jewish 
persecutions  are  found  in  and  about  Odessa,  where  the 
riots  have  been  appalling  in  deep  villainy  and  heartless 
cruelties.  These  singular  features  are  found  in  the  fact 
that  Odessa,  with  a  population  of  200,000,  is  so  cosmo- 
politian  as  to  be  Anti-Russian  ;  the  French  are  so  numer- 
ous that  they  have  stamped  their  impress  upon  the  city  ; 
in  fact  have  Frenchified  it ;  the  Russian  tongue  is  rarely 
spoken  in  Odessa,  hardly  so  much  as  the  Turk,  while 
among  the  upper  class  French  and  Italian  are  alone  used. 
We  also  observe  the  lack  of  Russian  influence  in  the 
absence  of  Greek  churches,  and,  in  short,  there  is  abund- 
ant evidence  that  the  Russ  people  are  despised  in  Odessa. 
Yet,  the  Jews  are  persecuted  here  with  a  severity  equal 
to  that  which  distinguished  the  rioters  at  Kief  or  Minsk. 
The  cause  is  found,  not  in  religious  intolerance  nor  in 
race  prejudices,  but  in  that  vicious  desire  which  devel- 
ops under  conditions  identical  with  those  which  are  so 
frequently  found  in  Russia — the  love  for  plunder  when 
incited  thereto  by  a  mob.  It  is  like  shouting  * '  mad-dog  ' ' 
Sit  some  poor  canine,  the  cry  being  immediately  taken  up 
by  every  person  until  the  dog  is  killed.  The  Jews  are 
rich,  but  their  defensive  strength  is  poor,  they  therefore, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  531 

become  objects  for  spoliation,  and  whether  the  spoils- 
man be  Russian,  Frenchman,  Spaniard  or  Englishman, 
if  the  occasion  be  flattering,  the  cry  of  "  Jew,"  "  Christ- 
killer,"  etc.,  will  be  just  as  loud  against  them. 

The  trade  of  Odessa  is  in  the  hands  of  Polish  Jews, 
who  are  most  thoroughly  despised  by  the  illiterate  Russ. 
Many  of  these  Israelites  are  in  possession  of  large  tracts 
of  land  in  the  Odessa  district,  which  they  cause  to  be  cul- 
tivated for  their  own  account,  and  thus  they  enjoy  to  a 
large  extent  a  monopoly  of  the  produce  exports,  while 
they  are  both  land  owners  and  merchants.  Their  wealth 
stirs  up  against  them  the  hatred  of  all  Russia,  which 
hatred  extends  to  every  officer  of  the  Government  and 
also  to  the  subjects  of  other  nationalities  doing  business 
in  Russia.  . 

The  Jews  are  charged  with  the  most  heinous  offenses, 
but  the  charges  are  vague,  and  reducible  to  no  positive 
evidence.  "  They  make  their  money  by  the  most  infa- 
mous practices,"  it  is  said  ;  "they  lend  money  at  outra- 
geously high  rates  of  interest,  and  do  not  keep  their  own 
counting  houses  or  shops,  but  prowl  about  the  country  like 
wolves,  seeking  the  peasants  they  may  devour,  selling 
them  liquor  to  encourage  their  drunken  propensities,  tak- 
ing advantage  of  their  distress  to  wrest  from  them  deeds 
of  mortgage,  and  urging  them  on  the  road  of  ruin,  so  as 
ultimately  to  drive  them  out  of  their  homes  and  lands." 

All  this  is  tantamount  to  sajnng  that  the  Jews  are 
usurers  ;  then  the  question  arises,  What  are  the  provisions 
of  the  Russian  law  with  respect  to  usury,  whether  prac- 
ticed by  Jew  or  Gentile?  Money  is  no  more  than  an 
article  of  trade  on  which  Russians  and  Hebrews  place  a 
like  estimate;  there  is  no  Russian  shopkeeper  who  will 
not  ask  two  or  more  times  the  value  of  an  article  if  he 
thinks  his  customer  can  be  induced  to  pay  it,  so  there  is 


532  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

no  legal  reason  why  the  Jews  should  not  follow  the  ex- 
ample thus  set  before  them. 

My  experience  convinces  me  that  nowhere  under  the 
ethereal  canopy  is  there  another  nation  that  can  equal 
Russia  for  swindlers.  I  must  here  relate  an  incident  told 
me  while  on  my  voyage  up  the  Baltic  Sea  to  St.  Peters- 
burg. Among  our  passengers  was  an  Irish  gentleman 
who  had,  for  nearly  twenty  years,  been  running  a  large 
cotton  mill  in  Yaraslof,  Russia.  He  had  been  on  a  visit 
to  Ireland  and  was  now  returning  to  Yaraslof,  where  he 
made  his  home.  Said  he:  "The  person  who  goes  to 
Russia  without  understanding  the  ways  of  the  country 
will  undoubtedly  be  boldly  swindled.  Directly  after  first 
going  to  Yaraslof  I  purchased  a  pair  of  felt  boots  for  the 
sum  of  'twelve  roubles,  which  I  thought  very  cheap. 
Soon  after  making  the  purchase  I  showed  the  boots  to  a 
gentleman  who  was  an  old  resident  of  Russia,  but  who 
was  an  Englishman  with  whom  I  was  going  into  business  ; 
I  held  up  the  boots  in  an  admiring  manner  and  comment- 
ed upon  the  extraordinary  bargain  which  I  had  made. 
But  instead  of  uniting  in  my  opinion,  the  Englishman 
laughed  at  me  for  being  *  taken  in,'  as  he  expressed  it, 
and  then  declared  he  could  buy  a  pair  exactly  like  mine, 
and  at  the  same  place  where  my  purchase  was  made,  for 
five  roubles.  Excitedly  I  offered  to  wager  him  a  basket 
of  the  finest  wine  to  be  obtained  in  Yaraslof,  that  he 
could  not.  He  accepted  my  wager,  for  which  I  was  very 
glad,  for  I  felt  certain  to  win.  At  his  request  we  went 
down  to  the  store  where  I  had  bought  the  boots,  and  go- 
ing in  he  enquired  the  price  of  a  pair  like  those  I  had  ; 
the  shopkeeper  asked  him  fifteen  roubles.  Instantly  I 
clapped  my  hands  in  high  glee  and  called  on  him  to  pay 
the  bet.  But,  said  he,  *  give  me  a  little  time  and  I'll  buy 
the  boots  for  five  roubles.'  He  began  to  abuse  the  shop- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  533 

keeper  in  the  most  awful  manner,  calling  him  swindler, 
thief,  extortioner,  etc.  All  these  epithets  did  not  dis- 
turb the  good  humor  of  the  shopkeeper,  who  finally  con- 
sented to  let  the  boots  go  for  twelve  roubles.  My  friend 
turned  abruptly  upon  his  heel  and  with  many  impreca- 
tions went  out  of  the  shop,  while  I  laughed  and  urged 
him  to  pay  the  bet.  We  walked  down  the  street  a  little 
way  and  then  returning  came  back  by  the  shop  again. 
Seeing  us  go  by,  the  shopkeeper  ran  out  to  my  friend  and 
telling  him  a  long  story  about  how  much  the  boots  cost, 
he  offered  them  for  ten  roubles.  My  friend  only  gave 
him  another  cursing  and  then  went  on  ;  returning  in  a 
few  minutes,  we  again  walked  by  the  shop,  and  again 
the  merchant  ran  out  beseeching  my  friend  to  buy,  but 
still  there  was  no  trade,  so  that  for  the  third  time  we 
parted  from  the  shopkeeper,  who  had,  however,  offered 
the  boots  for  seven  roubles.  I  now  began  to  be  fright- 
ened, yet  I  could  hardly  think  that  the  man  would 
make  a  further  reduction  of  two  roubles.  After  staying 
away  nearly  one  hour,  for  the  fourth  time  we  passed. 
The  merchant,  who,  as  before,  ran  out,  caught  hold  of 
my  friend  and  began  to  argue  with  him.  The  English- 
man manifested  great  umbrage  and  threatened  to  strike 
the  shopkeeper  for  interfering  with  him  so  many  times, 
when  at  the  beginning  he  declared  he  would  not  give 
more  than  five  roubles  for  the  boots.  After  considerable 
quarreling  the  shopkeeper  at  length  accepted  the  original 
offer,  and  of  course  I  had  to  pay  for  the  wine." 

This  Jewish  manner  of  doing  business  is  common 
among  all  Russian  merchants,  so  that  generally  speaking 
any  article  may  be  purchased  from  them  for  about  one- 
third  the  price  which  they  first  ask. 

Now,  if  we  even  mistrusted  the  repeated  assertions 
made  throughout  Russia  that  Government  agents  were 


534  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

sent  among  the  populace  to  stir  up  their  evil  passions,  to 
justify  and  almost  provoke  their  violence  by  a  reference 
to  the  Emperor's  acts  and  wishes  ;  even  if  we  disbe- 
lieve the  statements  that  men  high  in  authority,  civil  or 
military  governors,  refused  to  interpose  between  the  mur- 
derers and  their  victims,  "  not  wishing  to  disturb  their 
soldiers  for  a  pack  of  Jews  ;  "  even  if  we  deemed  it  im- 
possible that  men  and  officers  belonging  to  the  army  or 
the  police,  either  remained  passive  spectators  of  the  worst 
outrages,  or  became  participators  in  them  ;  even  if  we 
make  abstraction  from  all  this,  yet  it  would  be  impossible 
to  find  words  sufficiently  severe  to  stigmatize  the  iniqui- 
tious  proclamation,  or  "  Rescript,"  of  September  3d,  in 
which,  instead  of  denouncing  the  atrocities  of  the  perse- 
cutors of  the  Jews,  the  Government  takes  the  opportunity 
of  enumerating  the  offences  of  the  Jews  themselves  ;  thus 
palliating,  if  not  actually  sanctioning,  any  excesses  that 
may  be  committed  against  them,  and  almost  inciting  the 
populace  to  run  amuck  them  :  '*  not  to  nail  the  Jew's  ear 
to  the  pump." 

And  yet,  after  all,  what  are  the  alleged  offences  of  the 
Jews? 

"  They  have  possessed  themselves  not  only  of  every 
trade  and  business  in  all  its  branches,  but  also  of  great 
part  of  the  land,  by  buying  and  farming  it." 

"  They  have  defrauded,  by  their  wiles,  the  inhabitants, 
and  particularly  the  poor  people." 

But  the  question  is,  or  should  be  :  "  Have  the  Jews 
broken  the  laws?  "  "  Do  the  laws  allow  either  Jew  or 
Christian  to  carry  on  illicit  trades  or  criminal  business?" 

If  the  Jews  have  acted  within  the  law  they  should 
have  lawful  protection.  If  their  offences  were  of  a  na- 
ture not  foreseen  by  the  existing  law,  then  it  should 
be  amended.  But  in  any  case  the  first  duty  of  the  Gov- 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA. 


535 


eminent  should  have  been  to  uphold  the  law  against  the 
persecuting  populace,  about  whose  unlawful  proceedings 
there  could  be  no  doubt  whatever ;  the  gravest  error  or 
crime  that  can,  in  a  civilized  country,  belaid  to  the  charge 


A  TYPICAL  RUSSIAN  JEW. 

of  a  Government  being  that  of  allowing  its  subjects  to 
take  the  law  into  their  own  hands. 

With  respect  to  the  main  offences  imputed  to  the  Jews, 
that  of  being  usurious  money  lenders,  and  keeping  dram- 
shops, I  must  repeat  that  the  fault  is  not  so  much. of  the 
Jews'  greed  and  knavery  as  of  the  Christians'  improvi- 


536  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

deuce  and  intemperance.  The  peasants  of  Northern  Rus- 
sia, though  there  be  no  Jews  among  them,  are  no  less  ad- 
dicted to  drunkenness,  and  no  less  eaten  up  by  debts  and 
mortgages,  than  peasants  of  the  Southern  and  Western  dis- 
tricts ;  for  there  are — both  North  and  South — plenty  of 
Christians  ready  to  lend  money  on  usury  and  to  keep 
dram-shops. 

There  is  nothing  more  certain  than  that  the  Jew,  the 
peddling  Jew,  has  no  chance  of  thriving,  except  among 
people  whom  ignorance  and  unthrif  t  deliver  into  his  hands 
as  easy  victims. 

It  is  not  by  banishing  or  exterminating  the  Jews  that 
Russia  can  hope  to  save  her  poor  peasants,  but  by  trying 
what  education  may  do  toward  curing  a  people  (to  whom 
no  one  can  deny  many  fine  qualities)  of  those  drunken,, 
thriftless,  and  vagrant  habits  which  have  always  been 
their  besetting  sins.  There  was  a  time  when  Jews  had  a  mo- 
nopoly of  the  money  business  in  Europe,  when  kings  and 
princes  drew  the  teeth  from  the  Hebrew's  jaws  to  get  at  the 
ducats  in  his  purse.  What  was  the  result?  The  Italians, 
-Lombards  and  Tuscans  set  up  in  competition.  They  en- 
nobled money  lending  by  creating  banking  houses.  They 
thus  beat  the  Jew  with  his  own  weapon,  and  their  names 
still  live  in  Lombard  street  and  Boulevard  des  Italiens; 
and  men  still  write  L.  s.  d.  instead  of  P.  s.  p.  This  is 
a  good  lesson  for  the  Russian  and  German  Governments 
to  study. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  537 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

I  have  given,  in  as  succinct  form  as  possible,  a  descrip- 
tion of  Russian  life  in  ail  its  phases,  as  I  found  it.  My 
trip  through  that  country,  made  rather  as  an  investigator 
than  tourist,  was  delightfully  pleasant  and  profitable  ; 
not  that  I  did  not  encounter  serious  difficulties  or  meet 
with  annoying  obstacles,  for  it  was  my  lot  to  suffer 
many  times  from  both,  but  all  the  unpleasant  episodes 
and  positions  which  jeopardized  my  safety  only  served  to 
make  the  result,  as  a  whole,  more  enjoyable.  I  have 
written  of  Russia  and  Siberia  at  times  both  facetiously 
and  solemnly,  but  always  with  frankness,  and,  so  far  as 
my  judgment  permitted,  truthfully.  It  is  most  difficult 
to  write  of  a  country  (covering  the  scope  which  I  have 
undertaken  in  this  work)  while  ignorant  of  the  language 
used  by  its  people,  because  information  received  through 
interpreters  must  always  have  about  it  the  suspicion 
which  usually  attaches  to  second-hand  stories.  But  I 
have  exercised  much  care  and  discrimination,  so  that  I 
have  no  hesitation  in  reaffirming  and  declaring  the  truth  of 
every  statement  herein  made. 

Russia  is  the  most  remarkable  as  well  as  the  largest 

o 

nation  on  the  earth  ;  her  history  is  wonderful,  because  it 
recounts  so  many  wars  with  barbaric  hordes  ;  claiming  to 
be  a  great  civilized  power,  yet  her  civilization  is  of  a 
doubtful  character  ;  nor  can  we  review  the  influences  by 
which  she  is  surrounded  and  expect  Russia  to  be  more 
progressive  with  the  spirit  of  education  and  that  uplift- 
ing force  of  science  which  dazzles  all  creation  with  intel- 
ligence ;  to  the  south  she  has  Turkey,  with  which  nation 
Russia  has  become  partially  amalgamated  in  spirit  by 
reason  of  the  bitter  wars  that  have  waged  between  them  ; 


538  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

on  the  southeast  is  Persia  and  the  Caucasus,  and  upon 
the  east  are  the  wild  tribes  of  Siberia  and  contiguous 
countries.  With  these  ferocious  races  Russia  has  been  at 
war  since  she  became  a  nation,  and  the  contests  have 
ever  been  conducted  upon  barbaric  principles.  Visitors 
to  the  museum  at  St.  Petersburg  will  not  fail  to  see  pre- 
served in  jars  of  alcohol,  and  mounted  in  glass  cases, 
several  heads  that  have  been  struck  off  by  imperial 
orders,  from  the  bodies  of  traitors  or  enemies  to  Russia. 
These  ghastly  trophies  are  actualty  paraded  in  the  capital 
as  an  exhibition  of  Muscovite  valor,  but  what  better  ex- 
ample of  barbarism  can  be  found  than  they  afford  ;  or 
what  better  proof  do  we  require  to  establish  the  asser- 
tion that  Russia  is  a  barbaric  nation  in  the  swaddling 
clothes  of  civilization  ? 

The  Government  of  Russia  is  fashioned  after  unen- 
lightened Suzerainties,  to  be  found  nowhere  except  in 
Pagan  countries.  The  word  Czar  comes  from  Caesar, 
but  even  the  great  power  of  Caesar  could  not  compare 
with  that  now  exercised  by  Russia's  ruler.  Not  only  is 
the  Czar  exalted  above  all  temporal  attributes,  but  his 
name  must  perforce  be  mentioned  with  that  awesome  re- 
gard which  the  faithful  Moujik  pays  to  God.  No  coun- 
try has  so  much  law  as  Russia,  yet  the  first  sentence  in 
her  code  is  this  :  "  The  Czar  is  above  all  law."  It  does 
not  even  say. "  Czar,  by  the  grace  of  God,"  as  they  do 
in  England,  because,  like  the  Pope  of  Rome,  Russia's 
sovereign  is  both  a  temporal  and  spiritual  ruler,  if  not 
equal  to  God,  at  least  one  of  His  chief  counselors.  This 
is  all  barbarism,  which  is  inversely  developed  into  more 
inordinate  Paganism  by  a  prohibition  of  secular  freedom 
and  the  exaltation  of  a  particular  creed  whose  very 
essence  is  ignorance  and  superstition. 

Shackled  by  faith  in  ancient  ceremonials,  bound  fast 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  539 

by  gyves  of  church  discipline,  divested  of  the  robes  of 
intelligence,  confined  in  the  damp,  foul,  pestilential  at- 
mosphere of  slavery  to  rulership,  blinded  by  fanatical 
prejudices  and  worse  than  fanatical  religion,  hedged 
about  with  intolerance,  poverty-stricken  with  a  debt 
created  by  church  indulgences,  utterly  lacking  in  homo- 
geneity, injustice  and  corruption  permeating  every  de- 
partment of  the  Government,  how  shall  Russia  raise  her- 
self from  under  such  grievous  burdens  and  set  her  eyes 
toward  a  civilization  such  as  other  Christian  nations  en- 

joy? 

I  am  sorry  to  say  it,  but  the  fact  is  so  apparent  that 
none  may  misconstrue  the  events  now  taking  place — the 
future  of  Russia  is  in  Nihilism  ;  if  this  bloody  power  does 
not  purge  the  nation  and  give  it  a  new  growth,  then  we 
cannot  predict  any  further  than  the  dismemberment  of 
the  Empire  and  its  gradual  absorption  into  other  powers. 
Civilization  is  spreading  rapidly  eastward,  it  cannot  stop 
or  go  around  Russia,  and  whether  with  bayonet  or  psalm- 
book  the  march  will  be  made  through  every  part  of  the 
Czar's  dominions  ;  resistance  will  be  like  a  shadow  fight- 
ing the  storms,  only  that  to  resist  as  a  nation  will  be  to 
destroy  every  vestige  of  Muscovite  Imperialism  and  leave 
her  as  another  Babylon  ;  or,  to  use  a  more  moderate  illus- 
tration, like  Poland,  that  has  been  so  voraciously  swal- 
lowed and  digested  by  her. 

The  Nihilists,  aside  from  their  inchoate  condition  and 
lack  of  objective  cohesion  that  concentrates  revolutionary 
parties  under  acknowledged  leadership,  are  prompted  by 
policies  and  apprehensions  at  strange  variance  with  the 
object  they  ostensibly  have  in  view.  In  this  observation 
I  have  reference  to  that  prime  Nihilistic  faction  which 
aims  at  liberalism  and  a  radical  reformation  of  the  Gov- 
ernment, which  shall  have  some  elements  of  democracy  in 


540  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

it.  They  confidently  believe  that  these  reforms  can  be 
obtained  through  a  process  of  terrorization,  particularly 
by  assassination.  That  this  is  a  fallacy  is  proved  by  the 
repeated  failures  which  have  followed  its  adoption  in 
nearly  every  country  of  both  hemispheres  since  history 
began  to  record  the  deeds  of  men. 

The  first  logical  step  toward  securing  enlarged  liber- 
ties to  the  people  of  E-ussia,  is  education  of  the  masses ; 
not  alone  education  in  science,  but  in  politics  as  well,  a 
mind  development  that  will  subvert  the  Greek  Church, 
which  is  a  ban  of  barbarism  almost  as  rank  and  more  de- 
basing than  Shamanism.  To-day  the  peasantry  of 
Russia  are  not  prepared  for  liberty,  which  is  to  them  no 
more  than  a  jewel  before  swine ;  so  long  as  the  poten- 
tentiality  of  the  Church  continues  absorbing  a  revenue 
doubly  in  excess  of  governmental  expenditures,  and  im- 
posing a  yoke  of  servitude  upon  its  subjects  more 
galling  than  ever  a  Romish  Pope  devised,  so  long  must 
Russians  suffer.  '  Abuses  of  the  aristocracy  and  impe- 
rialism are  made  possible  by  the  Church,  whose  dic- 
tatorial mandates  are  written  to  publish  the  Czar's 
pleasure  and  to  set  up  a  fear  of  the  devil  for  the  coercion 
of  those  who  might  otherwise  think  for  themselves. 

Liberalize  the  Church  and  a  liberalization  of  the  Gov- 
ernment would  be  certain  to  follow.  The  Greek  Church 
forbids  its  subjects  thinking,  while  the  Government  de- 
nies its  subjects  the  exercise  of  a  voice  in  public  affairs  ; 
that  power  which  oppresses  the  mind  is  ten-fold  more 
injurious  than  that  which  prescribes  the  acts  of  men  ; 
hence,  1  repeat,  the  first  important  step  toward  re- 
forming Russia  must  be  directed  to  the  curtailment  of  the 
Church  power  and  influence,  so  that  her  peasantry  may  be 
free  from  superstitions  and  be  made  to  understand  that 
they  have  a  mind  which  God  intended  they  should  USQ 
for  themselves, 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  541 

But  the  obstacles  which  now  so  seriously  hinder 
Russia's  advancement  are  no  greater  perhaps  than  those 
that  have  obstr  ucted  civilization  in  all  other  countries  ; 
hence,  we  cannot  resist  the  belief  that  she,  too,  will  ad- 
vance by  gradual  steps  and  finally  become  established  as 
a  free  and  fully  enlightened  government.  If  we  may 
look  forward  to  the  time  when  Russia  shall  develop  into 
a  republic,  or  even  a  limited  mo  narchy,  we  may  behold 
in  her  not  only  a  greater  power  than  now,  but  we  may 
also  observe  her  growth  into  a  government  absolutely 
peerless,  and  more  nearly  in  competition  with  the  United 
States  than,  any  other  nation  ever  can  be.  Already,  with 
all  of  Russia's  drawbacks,  she  contests  with  America  in 
agricultural  production  and  in  feeding  foreign  nations, 
and  were  her  possible  resources  fully  developed  by  im- 
proved machinery  and  well-applied  industry  she  would 
produce  enough  wheat,  corn,  potatoes,  rye,  barley,  etc., 
to  shut  our  cereals  entirely  out  of  the  European  market. 
The  revolution  in  Russia  means  not  only  the  downfall  of 
autocracy  and  the  breaking  up  of  those  customs  which 
aggrandize  a  few  by  the  impoverishment  of  many,  but  it 
also  means,  though  indefinite  and  doubtful  under  Nihi- 
listic policy,  an  enforced  recognition  of  agriculture  as  the 
prime  factor  in  national  existence;  it  means  encourage- 
ment to  industry  of  every  chara  cter  and  the  subversion 
of  every  element  in  the  Government  that  is  hurtful  to 
the  masses. 

Thousands  of  Russians  have  long  despaired  of  reforms 
being  granted  that  would  enlarge  their  liberties,  and  for 
the  first  time  in  the  history  of  that  country  there  is  a 
considerable  emigration  from  Russia,  not  an  inconsid- 
erable part  of  the  hegira  being  directed  toward 
America.  I  have  always  considered  it  an  ill-advised 
policy  to  throw  out  flattering  invitations  to  all  dissatisfied 


542  KUSSIAN  NIHILISM   AND 

foreigners  to  make  their  homes  with  us,  but  since  the 
policy  is  in  active  operation  I  must  say  that  no  class  of 
immigrants  would  be  more  valuable  to  America  than 
Russians  ;  they  are  patient,  honest,  and,  when  put  upon 
their  resources,  very  industrious  ;  no  people  are  less  ad- 
dicted to  disturbance,  their  amiable  qualities,  indeed, 
being  almost  phenomenal.  Raised  in  subjection  to  an 
aristocracy,  the  peasantry  seem  to  expect  the  treatment 
of  slaves  ;  they  will  submit  to  any  indignity  from  those 
whom  they  regard  their  superiors,  and  their  confidence  is 
easily  gained  ;  they  are  faithful  to  any  trust,  and  consid- 
ered in  all  their  peculiarities  they  are  the  most  humble, 
frugal  and  deserving  people  on  the  earth.  Placed  upon 
any  of  our  Western  prairies  the  Russians  would  thrive 
greatly,  though  in  their  own  country,  where  land  is  al- 
most superabundant,  they  make  little  progress  and  mani- 
fest a  shiftlessness  that  is  most  reprehensible.  But  this 
is  due  to  causes  lhave  already  explained  in  describing  the 
facts  and  results  of  serf  manumission.  Wherever  a 
Russian  possesses  absolute  proprietary  interests  he  inva- 
riably prospers,  nor  does  he  exhibit  any  disposition  to 
idleness. 

Though  Russia  may,  and  doubtless  soon  will  become 
the  most  dangerous  competitor  we  can  ever  have,  yet 
America  cannot  help  feeling  a  friendly  interest  in  her 
prosperity  ;  we  cannot  afford  to  forget  the  kind  offices 
extended  us  by  Russia  in  the  most  distressing  era  of  our 
national  life.  The  two  Alexanders  have  always  been  our 
friends,  and  to-day  the  subjects  of  no  other  nation  are  so 
warmly  welcomed  in  the  Empire  and  so  considerately 
treated  by  all  Russians  as  are  those  of  America.  To  say 
"  I  am  an  American,"  in  St.  Petersburg,  is  almost  like 
the  open  sesame  of  Ali  Baba  ;  it  is  enough,  and  to  all 
such  JRussiq,  extends  u  most  hospitable  welcome.. 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  543 

It  has  been  in  no  contentious  or  prejudiced  spirit  that 
I  have  written  of  Russia  as  semi-barbaric  ;  so  far  from 
using  the  term  as  one  of  reproach  I  have  employed  it 
rather  to  excuse  the  manifest  faults  of  the  Empire,  the 
faults  of  the  son  as  seen  in  the  father,  the  faults  of  train- 
ing, which  are  as  natural  and  similar  as  the  blood  of 
consanguinity. 

The  growth  of  Russia  toward  liberalism  is  slow,  but 
it  is,  nevertheless,  apparent.  Her  greatest  scientists, 
poets,  philosophers,  are  of  the  present  century  ;  her 
greatest  newspapers  and  manufactories  are  of  to-day ; 
her  finest  churches  were  built  many,  many  years  ago,  and 
her  priesthood  has  lost  the  respect  of  the  masses.  Are 
not  these  gratifying  evidences  of  improvement? 

These  were  my  reflections  while  in  Russia,  which  have 
been  strengthened  by  a  further  consideration  of  the  sub- 
ject since,  but  while  thinking  of  Russia's  future  I  cannot 
help  feeling  sympathy  for  poor  Poland,  whose  subjuga- 
tion is  Russia's  greatest  disgrace.  Suffering  Poland! 
distress  has  been  the  price  of  her  patriotism,  and  though 
she  struggled  with  a  bravery  almost  unparalled  yet  her 
struggles  were  like  those  of  Spartacus  and  the  heroic 
Thracians,  for  now  she  lies  as  one  dead  at  the  feet  of 
liberty. 

Before  leaving  Warsaw  I  remembered  my  promise 
made  tc  the  exile  in  his  lonely  hut  near  Yeniseisk,  and 
determined  to  fulfil  it.  I  therefore  persuaded  the  man- 
agers of  the  Hotel  Victoria  to  address  a  letter,  in  Rus- 
sian, to  the  exile's  wife  at  Micahow,  and  to  fill  it  with 
many  endearing  words,  which  I  thought  would  convey 
the  feelings  of  the  exile  toward  one  whom  I  was  sure  he 
still  loved  devotedly.  Nothing  could  have  afforded  me 
more  pleasure  than  to  have  witnessed  the  effect  produced 
by  this  letter,  if  it  was  received  by  the  wife  :  but  as  my 


544  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

curiosity  in  this  direction  must  ever  remain  unsatisfied,  I 
will  still  take  delight  in  thinking  of  the  happiness  I 
caused  the  poor  exile  and  the  possible  pleasure  my  act 
may  have  given  his  wife. 

Having  spent  nearly  one  week  in  Warsaw,  and  gathered 
all  the  information  available  for  my  purposes,  I  prepared 
to  leave  for  London  by  way  of  Vienna  and  Paris.  Before 
departing,  in  company  with  a  guide,  1  went  to  an  ex- 
change office  in  Warsaw  to  convert  my  Russian  money 
into  Austrian  florins.  As  all  the  exchange  dealers  in  the 
place  are  Jews,  I  of  course  went  into  the  Israelitish  quar- 
ters and  was  conducted  to  what  my  guide  declared  was 
the  largest  and  most  reliable  broker  in  Warsaw.  If  the 
guide  had  omitted  to  tell  me  this,  I  would  certainly  have 
inclined  to  the  belief  that  this  same  broker  was  a  lean 
and  hungry  apothecary  ;  his  place  was  shabby  in  the  ex- 
treme ;  there  was  a  rickety  counter  behind  which,  on  the 
grimy  walls,  were  shelves  stored  with  phials  and  old 
greasy  packages ;  an  old  Jew,  of  marked  features,  cov- 
ered up  in  a  long  overcoat  and  with  an  immense  muffler 
around  his  neck,  sat  on  a  stool  waiting  for  customers. 
He  appeared  very  glad  when  we  entered,  evidently  in  an- 
ticipation of  a  few  copecks,  and  bowed  so  graciously  that 
he  quite  impressed  me,  but  1  could  only  return  his  salu- 
tation by  a  nod  of  the  head  and  by  smiling  familiarly. 
My  guide  did  all  the  talking,  and  effected  an  ex- 
change of  one  hundred  roubles,  the  rest  of  my  money 
being  in  English  pound  notes.  When  we  got  back  to  the 
hotel  I  made  a  calculation  of  what  I  should  have  received 
in  the  exchange  and  found  that  the  sagacious  and  con- 
descending old  fellow  had  discounted  me  so  that  I  was 
one  florin  short.  I  was  so  well  satisfied  that  the  broker 
had  knowingly  swindled  me  that,  with  the  guide,  I  imme- 
diately returned  and  had  my  interpreter  explain  the 


EXILE  LIFE  IN  SIBERIA.  545 

shortage ;  whereupon,  without  any  discussion  of  the 
matter,  the  Jew  gave  me  another  florin,  with  a  look 
which  plainly  told  that  he  knew  it  all  the  time,  and  had 
only  experimented  to  see  if  I  would  find  it  out. 

The  train  service  between  Warsaw  and  Vienna  is  excel- 
lent, much  better  than  I  found  it  in  any  other  part  of  the 
continent.  The  sleeping  cars  are  made  into  compart- 
ments large  enough  to  accommodate  only  two  persons, 
and  since  travel  between  the  two  cities  is  not  usually 
great,  a  compartment  to  one's  self  is  easily  obtained  with- 
out extra  cost.  These  accommodations  are  even  more 
exclusive  than  the  staterooms  in  Pullman  sleepers,  while 
the  upholstery  is  much  more  luxurious.  My  trip  down 
to  Vienna  was  a  very  pleasant  one,  with  two  exceptions  : 
about  one  o'clock  at  night  I  was  rudely  awakened  by  a 
man  who  pounded  viciously  at  the  door  of  my  compart- 
ment, and  when  I  let  him  in  his  actions  and  speech  were 
such  that  I  thought  he  was  a  train-robber.  He  spoke 
Russian,  and  of  course  I  had  to  rely  on  his  gestures. 
After  thumping  around  for  some  time,  he  grabbed  my 
valise  and  began  to  wrench  at  it  until  I  was  on  the  point 
of  giving  him  the  bounce  or  being  bounced  myself ,  when 
the  sleeping-car  conductor  made  his  appearance,  and,  as  he 
spoke  German,  I  was  soon  made  acquainted  with  the  fact 
that  we  had  arrived  at  Granitza,  on  the  Russian  frontier, 
where  the  passport  examiner  inspected  the  papers  of  all 
persons  leaving  Russia.  I  got  out  my  passport,  to 
which  was  attached,  by  large  red  seals,  my  Siberian 
podorojna,  and  also  a  special  order  from  the  Russian 
Government  requesting  all  officers  to  facilitate  my  pur- 
poses and  to  give  me  any  aid  I  might  require.  Seeing 
these  special  privilege  papers,  the  examining  officer  took 
off  his  hat  to  me  as  though  he  had  just  discovered  that  I 
was  a  prince  or  king  in  undress,  and  gave  me  a  five-*. 


546  RUSSIAN  NIHILISM  AND 

minute  speech  of  apology.  I  now  tumbled  into  bed  and 
was  not  long  in  reaching  a  sound  sleep  again,  but  at  three, 
A.  M.,  I  was  frightened  out  of  rny  slumber  by  another 
kicking  at  my  stateroom  door  and  a  yelling  all  along  the 
line.  Great  guns !  I  thought,  are  we  attacked  by 
brigands,  thrown  off  abridge,  or  in  a  dreadful  smash-up? 

"Zollbeamte!  "  (Custom-officer,)  cried  a  voice  at  the 
door. 

"  Well,  you  need  not  make  such  an  outrageous  racket 
about  it,  if  you  are,"  I  answered.  "  I  have  nothing  duti- 
able, so  pass  on  to  the  next  customer." 

This  made  the  Austrian  custom  officer  red-hot,  so  to 
speak,  for  I  now  understood  that  we  had  passed  out  of 
Russia  and  were  at  Shtchakova,  the  first  station  in  Austria, 
and  levity  before  an  Austrian  is  worse  than  a  red  flag  in 
France.  He  pounded  with  increased  gusto  until  I  opened 
the  door  and  showed  him  a  small  satchel  filled  with 
manuscripts  and  second-hand  books.  At  sight  of  these 
he  gave  me  a  fierce  look  and  then  pasted  a  double  eagle 
on  my  bag  and  shot  out  of  the  room  as  though  he  had 
lost  a  great  deal  of  precious  time  with  me.  Thus  I  left 
Russia  and  entered  new  dominions. 

The  matter  is  foreign  to  my  subject,  but  as  it  is  a  part 
of  rny  experience,  I  wish  to  s^iy  that  the  trip  from  Vienna 
to  Paris  is  about  as  uncomfortable  as  stupidity  can  make 
it.  I  engaged  a  sleeping-car  berth  of  the  International 
Wagon  Lits,  and  was  assigned  to  a  small  compartment  in 
which  there  were  already  three  others.  The  room  was 
so'  small  that  only  two  persons  could  sit  in  it  at  the  s:i:^ 
time,  so  we  had  to  take  turns  in  standing  in  the  passage- 
way. At  Stuttgart,  which  is  about  intermediate  between 
Vienna  and  Paris,  a  common  link  coupling,  which  con- 
nected our  sleeper  with  the  train,  broke,  and  most  aston- 
ishing to  relate,  the  sleeping-car  was  abandoned,  because 


EXILE  LIFE  IX  SIBERIA.  547 

a  new  link  was  not  obtainable.  Thence  we  rode  into 
Paris  in  a  third-class  car,  because  there  was  no  room  in 
the  others.  This  trip  was  almost  as  harassing  as  my 
journey  from  Ekaterineburg  to  Irkoutsk,  but  it  taught 
me  why  people  go  to  Europe  to  spend  their  summers  ; 
first,  because  it  is  thought  to  be  fashionable  ;  and  second, 
because  the  accommodations  of  every  character  through- 
out the  continent  are  so  execrable,  if  not  horrible,  that 
after  spending  a  few  weeks  in  Europe  it  is  like  stepping 
out  of  the  back  door  of  hades  into  the  front  parlor  of 
heaven  to  get  back  to  America  again  ;  it  teaches  us  how 
to  appreciate  our  own  country. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CAT  jFm>*"  •    -  RY 

low. 


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